HISTORY AND ANALYSIS 



CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES, 




A FULL ACCOUNT OF THE CONFEDERATIONS WHICH PRECEDED IT ; 
OF THE DEBATES AND ACTS OF THE CONVENTION WHICH FORMED IT | 

OF THE JUDICIAL DECISIONS WHICH HAVE CONSTRUED IT : 
WITH PAPERS AND TABLES ILLUSTRATIVE OF THE ACTION OF THE GOVERN- 
MENT AND THE PEOPLE UNDER IT. 



BY y 

NATHANIEL C. TOWLE, 

COUNSEIiOR AT LAW, WASHINGTON, D. C. 

SECOND EDITION. 



BO STON: 
LITTLE, BROWN AND COMPANY. 

18 61. 



,0. 



^\-<^ 



V'Sfe^ 



Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1860, by 

N. C. TOWLE, 

In the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the District of Columbia. 



CAMBRIDGE: 

Allen and Farnham, Stereotypers and Printers. 



PEEFACE. 



I PRESENT to the citizens of the United States -an ac- 
count of the proceedings which established the political 
institutions, from which have originated, and by which are 
maintained, their freedom and their prosperity. I purpose 
to show how, by a movement at first almost impercep- 
tible, but increasing in the progress of time, until it 
assumed the attitude of independence, the Colonies of 
America became a Confederation, and finally a republic 
of States. I intend to exhibit the results of the delibera- 
tions of every convention or congress of the colonies and 
States, from that which assembled at Boston within the 
first half century of their settlement, to that which, in 
1787, finally established the basis of our government. 
My object is not so much to give a detailed history of 
each particular step of our national progress, as to famil- 
iarize the people with the original principles of the gov- 
ernment under which they now five. I endeavor to do 
this by offering to the public such a statement of the 
origin of our Constitution, and of the confederations, con- 
ventions, judicial decisions, and other papers which relate 
to its adoption and practical operation, as will convey a 

(iii) 



IV PKBFACE. 

clear idea of the elements of which our national polity is 
composed. And it need not be said, that the more widely 
and accurately the essential principles and the proper 
functions of the political institutions of a State become 
known to its members, the more enlightened will be the 
legislation emanating from those who make their laws, 
and the more just will be the administration of their laws, 
and consequently the more will their general welfare and 
prosperity be promoted. 

In the hope that this volume will, in some degree, assist 
in the attainment of such results, and that its operation 
upon the minds of those who peruse it, may be productive 
of some benefit to the interests of our country, I venture 
to submit this work to the American people. 

N. C. TOWLE. 

Washington, D. C, Dec. 1, 1860. 



CONTE^Txs, 



PAGE 

I. CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES .... 1 



Introduction 31 

n. ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION, SHOWING THE 

ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT OF EACH CLAUSE . 37 



III. CLOSING PROCEEDINGS OF THE CONVENTION AND 

CONSEQUENT ACTION OF CONGRESS 245 

1. Resolutions op the Convention, reporting the Consti- 

tution to Congress 245 

2. Letter of the President of the Convention, trans- 

mitting the proceedings of the Convention and the new 
Constitution, to the Congress of the Confederation . . . 246 

3. Resolutions of the Congress, submitting the Constitu- 

tion to the States for ratification 247 

4. Resolutions of the Congress, fixing the time for the 

elections and for putting the new government into opera- 
tion . . 248 



IV. DOCUMENTS CONNECTED WITH THE PROCEEDINGS 

OF THE FEDERAL CONVENTION 251 

1. Letter of Mr. Madison to Mr. Randolph, suggesting 

an outline for a Constitution 252 

A* (V) 



n CONTENTS. 

2. Mr. Eandolph's Plan, or outline, submitted to the Con- 

vention at the opening of the session 255 

3. Mk. Patterson's Plan, offered as a substitute for Mr. 

Eandolph's 259 

4. Mb. Pincknet's Plan, submitted to the Convention at the 

opening of its session 262 

5. Colonel Hamilton's Plan 269 

6. General Eesoltjtions ; agreed to by the Convention and 

referred to the Committee on Detail, on the 26th July . . 271 

7. Draft of the Constitution, as reported by the Com- 

mittee on Detail, Aug. 6, 1787 276 

8. Extracts from the Debates on the Several Gen- 

eral Propositions . . 289 



V. HISTOEY OF THE COLONIAL CONFEDEEATIONS . . 297 

Introduction 297 

Confederation of the United Colonies of New England, 

1643 302 

Congress of 1690 305 

Congress of 1754 306 

Congress of 1765 307 

Congress of 1774 315 



VI. OEIGIN OF THE FEDEEAL CONVENTION 328 

1. Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union; 

agreed to by the delegates in Congress, in 1777, and sub- 
sequently ratified by all of the States 328 

2. Eesolutions of the Legislature op New York, in 

reference to the critical condition of the Confederacy, and 
recommending the assembling of a General Convention of 
the States, 1782 337 

3. Eesolutions of the Legislature of Virginia, ap- 

pointing commissionei's to meet commissioners from other 
States, to take into consideration the trade of the United 
States 340 

4. Eeport of the Commissioners who met at Annapolis, 

Sept. 11, 1786, recommending that all the States should 
appoint delegates to a general Convention, authorized to 
devise provisions adequate to the exigencies of the Union 341 



CONTENTS. Vii 

5. Proceedings ix Congress, on the report of the Annap- 

olis Commissioners, concluding with — 345 

6. The Resolution for assembling the Federal Convention . 347 

7. Extracts from the Acts of the State Legisla- 

tures, authorizing the appointment of delegates to the 
Federal Convention, and showing the powers conferred 
on them 348 



VII. CESSION OF THE WESTERN TERRITORY, CLAIMED 
BY SEVERAL OF THE STATES AS BEING WITHIN 
THEIR CHARTERED LIMITS, TO THE UNITED 
STATES 350 

1. Preliminakt Statement 350 

2. Instructions of the State op Maryland to her 

Delegates in Congress, on the subject of the Western 

territory 351 

8. Resolutions op the State op Delaware, on the 

same subject 355 

4. Resolutions of Congress, recommending to Virginia 

and other States to forbear issuing warrants or grants for 
unappropriated lands 356 

5. Act of the State of New York, ceding to the United 

States her claims to the Western territory 356 

6. Resolution of Congress, recommending to the States 

which have claims to the Western lands, to pass such 
laws as will quiet the other States 359 

7. COBIPACT BETWEEN THE ORIGINAL StATES and the 

People and States to be formed in the Territory North- 
west of the Ohio River, contained in the Ordinance of 
1787 360 



VIII NEW STATES, ORGANIZATION AND ADMISSION 

INTO THE UNION 364 

1. Vermont 364 

2. Kentucky 364 

3. Tennessee 364 

4. Ohio 365 

5. Louisiana 365 

6. Indiana 365 



Viii CONTENTS. 



7. Mississippi 365 

8. Illinois 365 

9. Alabama 366 

10. Maine 366 

11. Missouri 366 

12. Arkansas 366 

13. Michigan 367 

14. Florida 367 

15. Iowa 370 

16. Texas 367 

17. Wisconsin 370 

18. California 371 

19. Minnesota 371 

20. Oregon 371 

21. Territories 371 

22. District of Columbia 372 



IX. ORGANIZATION OF THE EXECUTIVE DEPAKTMENTS 376 

1. Department of State 376 

2. Treasury Department 377 

3. Department of the Interior 382 

4. War Department 384 

5. Navy Department 385 

6. Post-office Department 387 

7. Attorney-general's Office 389 



X. TABLE OF ELECTORAL VOTES FOR PRESIDENT AND 

VICE-PRESIDENT, fkom 1789 to 1856 390 

XI. TABLES OF THE EXECUTIVE ADMINISTRATIONS, 

containing the names of the members composing each cabinet, 
from Washington's to Buchanan's, inclusive, and the average 
annual expenditure 404 



XII. LISTS OF OFFICERS OF THE GOVERNMENT, from 

1789 TO 1860 415 

Supreme Court of the United States 415 

Chief Justices . . . . • 415 

Associate Justices 415 

Vice-Presidents of the United States 417 



CONTENTS. IX 

Presidents pro tempore op the Senate 417 

Speakers of the House op Eepkesentatives . . .419 

Members of Conventions and Congresses, prior to the 

adoption of the Constitution 420 

Convention of 1643 420 

Congress of 1754 420 

Congress of 1765 421 

Congress, from 1774 to 1788 422 

Constitutional Convention of 1787 428 

Signers op the Declaration op Independence, 1776 . 430 
List op the Members of the Thirty-sixth Congress 434 
Synoptical Index to the Constitution 439 



HISTORY AND ANALYSIS 



CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES. 



(11) 



CONSTITUTION 



THE u:p(ited states of AMEEICA. 



We the People of the United States, in order to 
form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, 
insure domestic Tranquillity, provide for the com- 
mon defence, promote the general "Welfare, and 
secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and 
our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Con- 
stitution for the United States of America.^^ 

ARTICLE. I. 
Section. 1. All legislative Powers herein granted 
shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, 
which shall consist of a Senate and House of Rep- 
resentatives.^^ 

Section. 2. The House of Representatives shall 
be composed of Members chosen every second 

1 (1) 



2 CONSTITUTION. 

Year by the People of the several States, and the 
Electors in each State gh?ul have the Qualifications 
requisite for Electors of the r Jost numerous Branch 
of the State 'LegiAp.cvueS^ 

No Person shall bo a Eepresentative who shall 
not have attained to the Age of twenty five Years, 
and been seven Years a Citizen of the United States, 
and who shall not, when elected, be an Inhabitant 
of that State in which he shall be chosen.^^ 

Eepresentatives and direct Taxes shall be appor- 
tioned among the several States which may be 
included within this Union, according to their re- 
spective Numbers, which shall be determined by 
adding to the whole Number of free Persons, in- 
cluding those bound to Service for a Term of Years, 
and excluding Indians not taxed, three fifths of all 
other Persons.^^ 

The actual Enumeration shall be made within 
three Years after the first Meeting of the Congress 
of the United States, and within every subsequent 
Term of ten Years, in such Manner as they shall 
by Law direct.^^ 

The Number of Representatives shall not exceed 
one for every thirty Thousand, but each State shall 
have at Least one Eepresentative; and until such 
enumeration shall be made, the State of New Hamp- 



CONSTITUTION. 3 

shire shall be entitled to chiise three, Massachusetts 
eight, Rhode-Island and Providence Plantations one, 
Connecticut five. New- York six, New Jersey four, 
Pennsylvania eight, Delaware one, Maryland six, 
Virginia ten, North Carolina five. South Carolina 
five, and Georgia three. 

When vacancies happen in the Representation 
from any State, the Executive Authority thereof 
shall issue Writs of Election to fill such Vacancies. 

The House of Representatives shall chuse their 
Speaker and other Officers; and shall have the sole 
Power of Impeachment.^^ 

Section. 3. The Senate of the United States shall 
be composed of two Senators from each State, 
chosen by the Legislature thereof, for six Years; 
and each Senator shall have one Vote.^^ 

Immediately after they shall be assembled in 
Consequence of the first Election, they shall be 
divided as equally as may be into three Classes. 
The Seats of the Senators of the first Class shall 
be vacated at the Expiration of the second Year, 
of the second Class at the Expiration of the fourth 
Year, and of the third Class at the Expiration of 
the sixth Year, so that one-third may be chosen 
every second Year; and if Vacancies happen by 
Resignation, or otherwise, during the Recess of the 



4 CONSTITUTION. 

Legislature of any State, the Executive thereof 
may make temporary Appointments until the next 
Meeting of the Legislature, which shall then fill 
such Vacancies.^^ ' 

No Person shall be a Senator who shall not have 
attained to the Age of thirty Years, and been nine 
Years a Citizen of the United States, and who shall 
not, when elected, be an Inhabitant of that State 
for which he shall be chosen.'^^ 

The Vice President of the United States shall be 
President of the Senate, but shall have no Vote, 
unless they be equally divided.^^ 

The Senate shall chuse their other Officers, and 
also a President pro tempore, in the Absence of the 
Vice Presideut, or when he shall exercise the Office 
of President of the United States.^^ 

The Senate shall have the sole Power to try all 
Impeachments. When sitting for that Purpose, they 
shall be on Oath or Affirmation. When the Presi- 
dent of the United States is tried, the Chief Justice 
shall preside : And no Person shall be convicted 
without the Concurrence of two thirds of the Mem- 
bers present. ^^ 

Judgment in Cases of Impeachment shall not 
extend further than to removal from Office, and 
Disqualification to hold and enjoy any Office of 



CONSTITUTIOlf. 

honour, Trust or Profit under the United States: 
but the Party convicted shall nevertheless be liable 
and subject to Indictment, Trial, Judgment and 
Ptinishment, according to Law.^^ 

Section. 4. The Times, Places and Manner of 
holding Elections for Senators and Kepresentatives, 
shall be prescribed in each State by the Legislature 
thereof; but the Congress may at any time by Law 
make or alter such Eegulations, except as to the 
places of chusing Senators.^^ 

The Cono-ress shall assemble at least once in 
every Year, and such Meeting shall be on the first 
Monday in December, unless they shall by Law 
appoint a different Day.^^ 

Section. 5. Each House shall be the Judge of 
the Elections, Eeturns and Qualifications of its 
own Members, and a Majority of each shall con- 
stitute a Quorum to do Business; but a smaller 
Number may adjourn from day to day, and may 
be authorized to compel the Attendance of absent 
Members, in such Manner, and under such Penal- 
ties as each House may provide.^* 

Each House may determine the Rules of its 
Proceedings, punish its Members for disorderly Be- 
haviour, and, with the Concurrence of two thirds, 
expel a Member.^* 



6 CONSTITUTION. 

Each House shall keep a Journal of its Proceed- 
ings, and from time to time publish the same, ex- 
cepting such Parts as may in their Judgment 
require Secrecy; and the Yeas and Nays of the 
Members of either House on any question shall, at 
the Desire of one fifth of those Present, be entered 
on the Journal.^'' 

Neither House, during the Session of Congress, 
shall, without the Consent of the other, adjourn for 
more than three days, nor to any other Place than 
that in which the two Houses shall be sitting.^^ 

Section. 6. The Senators and Representatives 
shall receive a Compensation for their Services, to 
be ascertained by Law, and paid out of the Treasury 
of the United States. They shall in all Cases, 
except Treason, Felony and Breach of the Peace, 
be privileged from Arrest during their Attendance 
at the Session of their respective Houses, and in 
going to and returning from the same ; and for 
any Speech or Debate in either House, they shall 
not be questioned in any other Place.^^ 

No Senator or Representative shall, during the 
Time for which he was elected, be appointed to 
any civil Office under the Authority of the United 
States, which shall have been created, or the Emol- 
uments whereof shall have been encreased during 



CONSTITUTION. 7 

such time ; and no Person holding any Office under 
the United States, shall be a Member of either 
House during his Continuance in Office.^^ 

Section. 7. All Bills for raising Revenue shall 
originate in the House of Representatives ; but the 
Senate may propose or concur with Amendments as 
on other Bills.^^ 

Every Bill which shall have passed the House of 
Representatives and the Senate, shall, before it be- 
come a Law, be presented to the President of the 
United States ; If he approve he shall sign it, but 
if not he shall return it, with his Objections to that 
House in which it shall have originated, who shall 
enter the Objections at large on their Journal, and 
proceed to reconsider it. If after such Reconsider-, 
ation two thirds of that House shall agree to pass 
the Bill, it shall be sent, together with the Objec- 
tions, to the other House, by which it shall likewise 
be reconsidered, and if approved by two thirds of 
that House, it shall become a Law. But in all such 
Cases the Votes of both Houses shall be determined 
by yeas and Nays, and the Names of the Persons 
voting for and against the Bill shall be entered on 
the Journal of each House respectively. If any 
Bill shall not be returned by the President within 
ten Days (Sundays excepted) after it shall have 



8 CONSTITUTION. 

been presentea to him, the Same shall be a law, 
in like Manner as if he had signed it, unless the 
Congress by their Adjournment prevent its Eeturn, 
in which Case it shall not be a Law.-^^*' 

Every Order, Resolution, or Vote to which the 
Concurrence of the Senate and House of Represent- 
atives may be necessary (except on a question of 
Adjournment) shall be presented to the President 
of the United States; and before the Same shall 
take Effect, shall be approved by him, or being dis- 
approved by him, shall be repassed by two thirds 
of the Senate and House of Representatives, ac- 
cording to the Rules and Limitations prescribed in 
the Case of a BWV'^ 

Section. 8. The Congress shall have Power 

To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and 
Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the 
common Defence and general Welfare of the Uni- 
ted States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises 
shall be uniform throughout the United States ;-^°^ 

To borrow Money on the credit of the United 
States; 10^ 

To regulate Commerce with foreign NatiouvS, 
and among the several States, and with the In- 
dian Tribes ;^*^^ 

To establish an uniform Rule of Naturalization, 



CONSTITUTION. 9 

and uniform Laws on the subject of Bankruptcies 
throughout the United States ;^^^ 

To coin Money, regulate the Value thereof, and 
of foreign Coin, and fix the Standard of Weights 
and Measures ; "^ 

To provide for the Punishment of counterfeiting 
the. Securities and current Coin of the United 
States ; "^ 

To establish Post Offices and post Roads ;^^^ 

To promote the progress of Science and useful 
Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and 
Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective 
Writings and Discoveries;"^ 

To constitute Tribunals inferior to the supreme 
Court ; 122 

' To define and punish Piracies and Felonies com- 
mitted on the high Seas, and Offences against the 
Law of Nations ; ^^a 

To declare War, grant Letters of Marque and 
Reprisal, and make Rules concerning Captures on 
Land and Water ; ^^ 

To raise and support Armies, but no Appropria- 
tion of Money to that Use shall be for a longer 
Term than two Years ; -^^s 

To provide and maintain a Navy ; ^^s 

To make Rules for the Government and Regula- 
tion of the land and naval Forces ^^^s 



10 CONSTITUTION. 

To provide for calling forth the Militia to exe- 
cute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections 
and repel Invasions ; -^^^ 

To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplin- 
ing, the Militia, and for governing such Part of 
them as may be employed in the Service of the 
United States, reserving to the States respectively, 
the Appointment of the Officers, and the Authority 
of training the Militia according to the Discipline 
prescribed by Congress.-^^^ 

To exercise exclusive Legislation in all Cases 
whatsoever, over such District (not exceeding ten 
Miles square) as may, by Cession of particular 
States, and the Acceptance of Congress, become 
the Seat of the Government of the United States, 
and to exercise like Authority over all Places pur- 
chased by the Consent of the Legislature of the 
State in which the Same shall be, for the Erection 
of Forts, Magazines, Arsenals, Dock- Yards, and other 
needful Buildings ; ^^^ — And 

To make all Laws which shall be necessary and 
proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing 
Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Con- 
stitution in the Government of the United States, 
or in any Department or Officer thereof^^^ 

Section. 9. The Migration or Importation of such 



CONSTITUTION. 11 

Persons as any of the States now existing shall 
think proper to admit, shall not be prohibited by 
the Congress prior to the Year one thousand eight 
hundred and eight, but a Tax or Duty may be im- 
posed on such Importation, not exceeding ten dol- 
lars for each Person.-^*^ 

The Privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus shall 
not be suspended, unless when in Cases of Rebellion 
or Invasion the public Safety may require it.^*^ 

No Bill of Attainder or ex post facto Law shall be 
passed.-^^^ 

No Capitation, or other direct, Tax shall be laid, 
unless in Proportion to the Census or Enumeration 
herein before directed to be taken.-^'*^ 

No Tax or Duty shall be laid on Articles exported 
from any State.-^^^ 

No Preference shall be given by any Regulation 
of Commerce or Revenue to the Ports of one State 
over those of another : nor shall Vessels bound to, 
or from, one State, be obliged to enter, clear, or pay 
Duties in another.^^^ 

No Money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but 
in Consequence of Appropriations made by Lawj 
and a regular Statement and Account of the Re- 
ceipts and Expenditures of all public Money shall 
be published from time to time.-^^^ 



13 CONSTITUTION. 

No Title of Nobility shall be granted by the Uni- 
ted States : And no Person holding any Office of 
Profit or Trust under them, shall, without the Con- 
sent of the Congress, accept of any present, Emol- 
ument, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from 
any King, Prince, or foreign State.^^^ 

Section. 10. No State shall enter into any Treaty, 
Alliance, or Confederation ; grant Letters of Marque 
and Reprisal; coin Money; emit Bills of Credit; 
make any Thing but gold and silver Coin a Tender 
in Payment of Debts; pass any Bill of Attainder, 
ex post facto Law, or Law impairing the Obligation 
of Contracts, or grant any Title of Nobility .^^^ 

No State shall, without the consent of the Con- 
gress, lay any Imposts or Duties on Imports or Ex- 
ports, except what may be absolutely necessary for 
executing it's inspection Laws : and the net Produce 
of all Duties and Imposts, laid by any State on 
Imports or Exports, shall be for the Use of the 
Treasury of the United States; and all such Laws 
shall be subject to the Revision and Controul of the 
Congress.^^''^ 

No State shall, without the Consent of Congress, 
lay any Duty of Tonnage, keep Troops, or Ships of 
War in time of Peace, enter into any Agreement or 
Compact with another State, or with a foreign 



CONSTITUTION. 13 

Power, or engage in War, unless actually invaded, 
or in such imminent Danger as will not admit of 
Delay.^^^ 

ARTICLE. II. 

Section. 1. The executive Power shall be vested 
in a President of the United States of America. 
He shall hold his Office during the Term of four 
Years, and, together with the Vice President, cho- 
sen for the same Term, be elected, as follows -^^^ 

Each State shall appoint, in such Manner as the 
Legislature thereof may direct, a Number of Elec- 
tors, equal to the whole Number of Senators and 
Representatives to which the State may be entitled 
in the Congress : but no Senator or Representative, 
or Person holding an Office of Trust or Profit under 
the United States, shall be appointed an Elector.^^^ 

[Amendment XII. — The Electors shall meet in 
their respective states, and vote by ballot for Presi- 
dent and Vice President, one of whom, at least, 
shall not be an inhabitant of the same state with 
themselves; they shall name in their ballots the 
person voted for as President, and in distinct ballots 
the person voted for as Vice-President, and they 
shall make distinct lists of all persons voted for as 
President, and of all persons voted for as Vice-Presi- 
2 



14 CONSTITUTION. 

dent, and of the number of votes for each, which 
lists they shall sign and certify, and transmit sealed 
to the seat of the government of the United States, 
directed to the President of the Senate ; — The Pres- 
ident of the Senate shall, in presence of the Senate 
and House of Representatives, open all the certifi- 
cates and the votes shall then be counted ; — The 
person having the greatest number of votes for 
President, shall be the President, if such number be 
a majority of the whole number of Electors ap- 
pointed ; and if no person have such majority, then 
from the persons having the highest numbers not 
exceeding three on the list of those voted for as 
President, the House of Representatives shall 
choose immediately, by ballot, the President. But 
in choosing the President, the votes shall be taken 
by states, the representation from each state having 
one vote; a quorum for this purpose shall consist 
of a member or members from two-thirds of the 
states, and a majority of all the states shall be 
necessary to a choice. And if the House of Rep- 
resentatives shall not choose a President whenever 
the right of choice shall devolve upon them, before 
the fourth day of March next following, then the 
Vice-President shall act as President, as in the case 
of the death or other constitutional disability of tho 



CONSTITUTION. 15 

President. The person having the greatest number 
of votes as Vice-President, shall be the Vice-Presi- 
dent, if such number be a majority of the whole 
number of Electors appointed, and if no person 
have a majority, then from the two highest numbers 
on the list, the Senate shall choose the Vice-Presi- 
dent ; a quorum for the purpose shall consist of 
two-thirds of the whole number of Senators, and 
a majority of the whole number shall be necessary 
to a choice. But no person constitutionally ineligi- 
ble to the office of President shall be eligible to 
that of Vice-President of the United States.] ^^^ 

Note. — The clause within brackets is the twelfth amendment, 
changing the mode of electing the President and Vice-President. 

The Congress may determine the Time of chus- 
ing the Electors, and the Day on which they shall 
give their Votes ; which Day shall be the same 
throughout the United States.-'^^ 

No Person except a natural born Citizen, or a 
Citizen of the United States, at the time of the 
Adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to 
the Office of President ; neither shall any Person be 
eligible to that Office who shall not have attained 
to the Age of thirty five Years, and been fourteen 
Years a Kesident within the United States.^''*^ 



16 CONSTITUTION. 

In Case of the Removal of the President from 
Of&ce, or of his Death, Resignation, or InabiHty to 
discharge the Powers and Duties of the said Ofl&ce, 
the same shall devolve on the Vice President, and 
the Congress may by Law provide for the Case of 
Removal, Death, Resignation, or Inability, both of 
the President and Vice President, declaring what 
Officer shall then act as President, and such Officer 
shall act accordingly, until the Disability be re- 
moved, or a President shall be elected.-^^^ 

The President shall, at stated Times, receive for 
his Services, a Compensation, which shall neither 
be encreased nor diminished during the Period for 
which he shall have been elected, and he shall not 
receive within that Period any other Emolument 
from the United States, or any of them.-^''^ 

Before he enter on the Execution of his Office, 
he shall take the followin^^ Oath or Affirmation : — 

"I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faith- 
" fully execute the Office of President of the United 
" States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, 
" protect and defend the Constitution of the United 
" States.^'3 

Section. 2. The President shall be Commander 
in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United 
States, and of the Militia of the several States, 



CONSTITUTION. 17 

when called into the actual Service of the United 
States ; he may require the Opinion, in writing, of 
the principal Officer in each of the executive De- 
partments, upon any Subject relating to the Duties 
of their respective Offices, and he shall have Power 
to grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offences against 
the United States, except in Cases of Impeach- 
ment.^'^ 

He shall have Power, by and with the Advice and 
Consent of the Senate, to make Treaties, provided two 
thirds of the Senators present concur; and he shall 
nominate, and by and with the Advice and Consent 
of the Senate, shall appoint Ambassadors, other 
public Ministers and Consuls, Judges of the supreme 
Court, and all other Officers of the United States, 
whose Appointments are not herein otherwise pro- 
vided for, and which shall be established by Law: 
but the Congress may by Law vest the Appointment 
of such inferior Officers, as they think proper, in 
the President alone, in the Courts of Law, or in the 
Heads of Departments.-'^'^ 

The President shall have Power to fill up all 
Vacancies that may happen during the Recess of 
the Senate, by granting Commissions which shall 
expire at the End of their next Session.^^*' 

Section. 3. He shall from time to time give to 
2* 



18 CONSTITUTION. 

the Congress Information of the State of the Union, 
and recommend to their Consideration such Meas- 
ures as he shall judge necessary and expedient ; he 
majj on extraordinary Occasions, convene both 
Houses, or either of them, and in Case of Disagree- 
ment between them, with Respect to the Time of 
Adjournment, he may adjourn them to such Time 
as he shall think proper ; he shall receive Ambassa- 
dors and other public Ministers ; he shall take Care 
that the Laws be faithfully executed, and shall 
Commission all the officers of the United States.^^^ 
Section. 4. The President, Vice President and 
all civil Officers of the United States, shall be re- 
moved from Office on Impeachment for, and Convic- 
tion of. Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and 
Misdemeanors.^^^ 

ARTICLE III. 
Section. 1. The judicial Power of the United 
States, shall be vested in one supreme Court, and in 
such inferior Courts as the Congress may from time 
to time ordain and establish. The Judges, both of 
the supreme and inferior Courts, shall hold their 
Offices during good Behavior, and shall, at stated 
Times, receive for their Services, a Compensation, 
which shall not be diminished during their Continu- 
ance in Office.^^" 



CONSTITUTION. 19 

Section. 2. The judicial Power shall extend to 
all Cases, in Law and Equity, arising under this 
Constitution, the Laws of the United States, and 
Treaties made, or which shall be made, under their 
Authority ; — to all Cases aifecting Ambassadors, 
other public Ministers, and Consuls; — to all Cases 
of admiralty and maritime Jurisdiction; — to Con- 
troversies to which the United States shall be a 
Party; — to Controversies between two or more 
States; — between a State and Citizens of another 
State ; — between Citizens of different States, — 
between Citizens of the same State claimingr Lands 
under Grants of different "" States, and between a 
State, or the Citizens thereof, and foreign States, 
Citizens or Subjects.^^*^ 

In all Cases affecting Ambassadors, other public 
Ministers and Consuls, and those in which a State 
shall be Party, the supreme Court shall have origi- 
nal Jurisdiction. In all the other Cases before 
mentioned, the supreme Court shall have appellate 
jurisdiction, both as to Law and Fact, with such 
Exceptions, and under such Regulations as the 
Congress shall make.^^*' 

The Trial of all Crimes, except in Cages of Im- 
peachment, shall be by Jury ; and such Trial shall 
be held in the State where the said Crimes shall 



20 CONSTITUTION. 

have been committed; but when not committed 
within any State, the Trial shall be at such Place or 
Places as the Congress may by Law have directed.-^^^ 

Section. 3. Treason against the United States, 
shall consist only in levying War against them, or 
in adhering to their Enemies, giving them Aid and 
Comfort. No Person shall be convicted of Treason 
unless on the Testimony of two Witnesses to the 
same overt Act, or on Confession in open Court.-'^^ 

The Congress shall have Power to declare the 
Punishment of Treason, but no Attainder of Trea- 
son shall w^ork Corruption of Blood, or Forfeiture 
except during the Life of the Person attainted.^^^ 

ARTICLE. IV. 

Section. 1. Full Faith and Credit shall be given 
in each State to the public Acts, Eecords, and judi- 
cial Proceedings of every other State. And the 
Congress may by general Laws prescribe the Man- 
ner in which such Acts, Eecords and Proceedings 
shall be proved, and the Effect thereof.^^^ 

Section. 2. The Citizens of each State shall be 
entitled to all Privileges and Immunities of Citizens 
in the several States.^*^^ 

A Person charged in any State with Treason, 
Felony, or other Crime, who shall flee from Justice, 



CONSTITUTION. 21 

and be found in another State, shall on Demand of 
the executive Authority of the State from which he 
fled, be delivered up, to be removed to the State 
having Jurisdiction of the Crime.^*'* 

No Person held to Service or Labour in one State, 
under the Laws thereof, escaping into another, shall, 
in Consequence of any Law or Regulation therein, 
be discharged from such Service or Labour, but shall 
be delivered up on Claim of the Party to whom 
such Service or Labour may be due."°^ 

Section. 3. New States may be admitted by the 
Congress into this Union ; but no new State shall be 
formed or erected within the Jurisdiction of any 
other State ; nor any State be formed by the Junc- 
tion of two or more States, or Parts of States, with- 
out the Consent of the Legislatures of the States 
concerned as well as of the Congress.^°^ 

The Congress shall have Power to dispose of and 
make all needful Rules and Regulations respecting 
the Territory or other Property belonging to the 
United States ; and nothing in this Constitution 
shall be so construed as to Prejudice any Claims of 
the United States, or of any particular State.^^^ 

Section. 4. The United States shall guarantee to 
every State in this Union a Republican Form of 
Government, and shall protect each of them against 



22 CONSTITUTION. 

Invasion, and on Application of the Legislature, or 
of the Executive (when the Legislature cannot be 
convened) against domestic Violence.^^^ 

AETICLE. V. 
The Congress, whenever two thirds of both 
Houses shall deem it necessary, shall propose 
Amendments to this Constitution, or, on the Ap- 
plication of the Legislatures of two thirds of the 
several States, shall call a Convention for proposing 
Amendments, which, in either Case, shall be valid to 
all Intents and Purposes, as Part of this Constitution, 
when ratified by the Legislatures of three fourths 
of the several States, or by Conventions in three 
fourths thereof, as the one or the other Mode of 
Ratification may be proposed by the Congress ; Pro- 
vided that no Amendment which may be made prior 
to the Year one thousand eight hundred and eight 
shall in any Manner affect the first and fourth 
Clauses in the Ninth Section of the first Article ; 
and that no State, without its Consent, shall be de- 
prived of its equal Suffrage in the Senate.^^^ 

ARTICLE. VI. 

All Debts contracted and Engagements entered 



CONSTITUTION. 23 

into, before the Adoption of this Constitution, shall 
be as valid ag;ainst- the United States under this 
Constitution, as under the Confederation.^^^ 

This Constitution, and the Laws of the United 
States which shall be made in Pursuance thereof; 
and all Treaties made, or which shall be made, under 
the authority of the United States, shall be the su- 
preme Law of the Land; and the Judges in every 
State shall be bound thereby, any Thing in the 
Constitution or Laws of any State to the Contrary 
notwithstanding.^^ 

The Senators and Representatives before men- 
tioned, and the Members of the several State Legis- 
latures, and all executive and judicial Officers, both 
of the United States and of the several States, shall 
be bound by Oath or Affirmation, to support this 
Constitution ; but no religious Test shall ever be 
required as a Qualification to any Office or public 
Trust under the United States.^^ 

ARTICLE. YII. 

The Eatification of the Convention of nine States, 
shall be sufficient for the Establishment of this Con- 
stitution between the States so ratifying the Same.^^ 



24 CONSTITUTION. 

Done in Convention by the Unanimous Consent 
of the States present the Seventeenth Day of 
September in the Year of our Lord one thou- 
sand seven hundred and Eighty seven and of 
the Independance of the United States of 
America the Twelfth Iii i;¥tt!ies§ whereof 
We have hereunto subscribed our Names, 
GEO WASHINGTON — 
Presidt and deputy from Virginia 

NEW HAMPSHIRE. 
John Langdon, Nicholas Gilman. 

MASSACHUSETTS. 

Nathaniel Gokham, Rufus King. 

CONNECTICUT. 
Wm. Saml. Johnson, Roger Sherman. 

NEW YORK 

Alexander Hamilton. 

NEW JERSEY. 
Wil: Livingston, David Brearley, 

Wm. Paterson, Jona. Datton. 

PENNSYLVANIA. 

B. Franklin, Thomas Mifflin, 

RoBT. Morris, Geo : Cltmer, 

Tho : FiTzsiMONS, Jared Ingersoll, 

James Wilson, Gouv : Morris. 



CONSTITUTION. 



25 



Geo : Eead, 
John Dickinson, 
Jaco : Broom. 



James M'Henrt, 
Danl. Carroll. 



John Blair, 



DELAWAEE. 

Gunning Bedford, Jun'r, 

ElCHARD BaSSETT, 

MAEYLAND. 

Dan : of St. Thos. Jenifer, 

VIEGINIA. 

James Madison, Jr., 



NOETH CAEOLINA. 

Wm. Blount, Eich'd Dobbs Spaight, 

Hu. Williamson. 

SOUTH CAEOLINA. 

J. EuTLEDGE, Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, 

Charles Pinckney, Pierce Butler. 



William Few, 

Attest, 



GEOEGIA. 

Abr. Baldwin. 
WILLIAM JACKSON, Secretary. 



26 



CONSTITUTION. 



The Constitution was adopted on the 17th September, 1787, by 
the Convention appointed in pursuance of the resolution of the 
Congress of the Confederation, of the 21st February, 1787, and 
was ratified by the Conventions of the several States, as follows, 
viz. : 



By Convention of Delaware, 


on the 


5 7th December, 


1787. 


(( 


u 


Pennsylvania, 


ti 


12th December, 


1787. 


(( 


a 


New Jersey, 


li 


18th December, 


1787. 


11 


a 


Georgia, 


li 


2d January, 


1788. 


a 


li 


Connecticut, 


li 


9th January, 


1788. 


(( 


a 


Massachusetts, 


ii 


6th February, 


1788. 


a 


li 


Maryland, 


li 


28th April, 


1788. 


u 


li 


South Carolina, 


li 


23d May, 


1788. 


u 


li 


New Hampshire, 


a 


21st June, 


1788. 


11 


11 


Virginia, 


11 


26th June, 


1788. 


(I 


11 


New York, 


li 


26th July, 


1788. 


u 


u 


North Carolina, 


li 


21st November, 


1789. 


u 


ii 


Khode Island, 


it 


29th May, 


1790. 



ARTICLES 

IN ADDITION TO, AND AMENDMENT OF, 

THE COKSTEUTION OE THE UNITED STATES OE AMEEICA, 

Proposed hy Congress, and ratified hy the Legislatures of 
the several States, pursuant to the fifth article of the 
original Constitution. 

(ARTICLE 1.) 
Congress shall make no law respecting an estab- 
lishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise 
thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of 
the press; or the right of the people peaceably to 
assemble, and to petition the Government for a 
redress of grievances.^^*^ 

(ARTICLE 2.) 
A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the 
security of a free State, the right of the people to 
keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.^^^ 

(27) 



28 CONSTITUTION. 

(ARTICLE III.) 
No Soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered 
in any house, without the consent of the Owner, 
nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed 
bj law.^^^ 

(ARTICLE IV.) 
The right of the people to be secure in their per- 
sons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreason- 
able searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and 
no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, 
supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly 
describing the place to be searched, and the persons 
or things to be seized.^* 

(ARTICLE V.) 
No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or 
otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment 
or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases 
arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, 
when in actual service in time of War or public 
danger; nor shall any person be subject for the 
same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or 
limb ; nor shall be compelled in any Criminal Case 
to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of 
life, liberty, or property, without due process of 



CONSTITUTION. 29 

law ; nor shall private property be taken for public 
use, without just compensation.^^^ 

(ARTICLE VI.) 
In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall 
enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an 
impartial jury of the State and district wherein the 
crime shall have been committed, which district shall 
have been previously ascertained by law, and to be 
informed of the nature and cause of the accusation ; 
to be confronted with the witnesses against him ; to 
have Compulsory process for obtaining Witnesses in 
his favour, and to have the Assistance of Counsel 
for his defence.^^^ 

(ARTICLE VII.) 
In Suits at common law, where the value in con- 
troversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of 
trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact tried by 
a jury shall be otherwise re-examined in any Court 
of the United States, than according to the rules of 
the common law.^^^ 

(ARTICLE YIII.) 

Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive 

fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments 

inflicted.^^^ 

3* 



30 CONSTITUTION. 

(ARTICLE IX.) 
The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain 
rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage 
others retained by the people.^^ 

(ARTICLE X.) 
The powers not delegated to the United States by 
the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, 
are reserved to the States respectively, or to the 
people.^*^ 

ARTICLE XL 
The Judicial power of the United States shall not 
be construed to extend to any suit in law or equity, 
commenced or prosecuted against one of the United 
States by Citizens of another State, or by Citizens or 
Subjects of any Foreign State.^"*^ 



INTRODUCTION TO THE ANALYSIS. 



When the members of the Constitutional Convention assem- 
bled in Philadelphia, to enter upon the discharge of the duties 
which had been assigned to them, they had very vague, unde- 
fined, and incongruous views of the work upon which they were 
entering. Some of them supposed that their powers and duties 
were limited to devising such amendments to the existing arti- 
cles of confederation, as would enable Congress to provide a 
revenue by a tariff of duties on imports, for the purpose of rais- 
ing a fund for the payment of the public debt, and to secure uni- 
foimity in the commercial regulations of the several States. This 
idea was sustained by the general course of the proceedings, both 
in Congress and in the State legislatures, which had immediately 
led to the assembling of a general convention. The delegates to 
the Annapohs convention, which was the immediate precursor to 
that at Philadelphia, were limited in their commissions to those 
objects; and the instructions given by the State legislatures to 
most of the members of the constitutional convention, seemed to 
contemplate little more than a revision and amendment of the 
existing Articles of Confederation. 

Others of the members, particularly those from Virginia and 
South Carolina, were prepared to enter at once upon the construc- 

(31) 



32 INTRODUCTION TO THE ANALYSIS. 

tion of the organic law for a supreme general government, with- 
out regard, either in form or substance, to the existing articles of 
confederation. Mr. Madison, in a letter addressed to his col- 
league, Mr. Randolph, dated some time prior to the meeting, and 
prior to the election of delegates in several of the States, had sug- 
gested this view of the purpose and duty of the Convention. 

On the opening of the session, Mr. Randolph submitted a series 
of resolutions, embodying his views (which were substantially 
those suggested to him by Mr. Madison), of the character of 
goveniment he proposed to have established. 

Mr. Charles Pinckney, of South Carolina, at the same time, 
submitted his plan, embodying a similar purpose, but in a more 
detailed form. Both of these are inserted in another part of this 
volume. 

These two propositions were immediately referred to the com- 
mittee of the whole, and became the basis of an earnest and pro- 
tracted debate. In order to bring the question of the powers and 
purposes of the convention to a direct issue, Mr. Randolph, on the 
suggestion of Mr. Gouverneur Morris, modified his first resolution 
so as to declai'e, that a national government ought to be established, 
with supreme executive, legislative, and judiciary departments. 
Mr. Patterson, from New Jersey, in behalf of the delegates from 
that State, and of a majority of those from New York and some 
others, submitted a counter proposition, providing for such an 
amendment of the existing Articles of Confederation as would tend 
to obviate the difiiculties which had been the principal subjects of 
complaint. After a protracted discussion of these several propo- 
sitions, that of Mr. Randolph prevailed by a decisive majority. 
After the passage of the resolution, its phraseology was changed 
by substituting the words " United States " in place of the word 
" National." This may, perhaps, be regarded as a concession to 



INTRODUCTION TO THE ANALYSIS. 33 

some extent, on the part of the advocates of a strictly national 
government, to those who favored the maintenance of the confed- 
eracy. 

This question being settled, the Convention proceeded to the 
formation of the new Constitution. It having been agreed 
that the legislature should consist of two branches, the next 
important question upon which the members were divided, was in 
regard to the manner in which the respective States were to be 
represented in the legislative bodies. 

The States of Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Virginia, North 
Carolina, and South Carolina, contended that the several States 
should be represented in both houses of Congress, in proportion to 
the population and wealth of each State. New York, Connecti- 
cut, New Jersey, and Delaware insisted that the equality which 
the States had enjoyed in the confederation, as sovereign political 
communities, should be maintained in all of the branches of the 
new general government. The tenacity with which the two par- 
ties adhered to their respective positions on this question, seriously 
threatened the disruption of the Convention. 

The smaller States, together with New York, finally yielded to 
a proportional representation in the popular branch of Congress, 
but firmly adhered to their resolution to maintain their equality in 
the Senate, and intimated the alternative of secession, if this 
should be refused. The opposite party indicated its determination 
to accept the alternative. At this crisis, a committee of one from 
each State, was raised to make a further eflfort to effect a com- 
promise. In this committee, the two parties were equally repre- 
sented; but Dr. Franklin, the member of the committee for 
Pennsylvania, finding the other party resolved to adhere to their 
position at all hazards, yielded the point of equal State repre- 
sentation in the Senate, on condition that all bills for raising or 



34 INTRODUCTION TO THE ANALYSIS. 

appropriating money should originate in the other house. This 
compromise was sustained by the Convention, but by a vote less 
than a majority of the States represented, there being, on the final 
vote, but five States in the afiirmative, namely — Connecticut, 
New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, North Carolina; and four in 
the negative — Pennsylvania, Virginia, South Carolina, Georgia; 
New York absent, Massachusetts divided. 

The basis of representation in the House of Representatives, 
presented the next subject of serious controversy. The northern 
delegates generally contended that the free population should con- 
stitute the sole basis — while those from the South insisted that 
the entire population should be taken into the account. A ground 
of compromise for this difficulty, was found in the mode of count- 
ing the population when it was to be made the basis of taxation 
instead of the measure of power, and when the interests of the 
parties were in a reversed position. 

These fundamental questions having been adjusted, the Conven- 
tion proceeded to the arrangement of the details of the Constitu- 
tion without serious difficulty. 

The usual mode of proceeding was, to consider the several 
propositions, as they were submitted, first in committee of the 
whole and then in Convention, and if approved, they were referred 
to a committee of detail, who embodied them in proper form and 
reported them back to the Convention. They were then recon- 
sidered by the Convention and further modified, when deemed 
expedient, and finally referred to a committee of style and 
arrangement. This last committee did not report until the clos- 
ing days of the session, and their report, although it varies, in 
some respects, from what seems to have been the action of the 
Convention, was adopted without being questioned. This may 
account for some of the paragraphs, and particularly the pream- 



INTRODUCTION TO THE ANALYSIS. 35 

ble, appearing in a somewhat different form in the Constitution 
from that which the journal gives them. 

It is well known that the proceedings of the Convention were 
secret, and that, for what has transpired beyond the contents of 
the official journal, we are mainly indebted to Mr. Madison and 
Judge Lansing of New York, who kept daily notes of the pro- 
ceedings and debates of the Convention, from which this part of 
the work is principally compiled. 

It is the main purpose of this Analysis, to give such a history 
of the several clauses of the Constitution, as will make the objects 
and intentions of its framers clear and inteUigible. This, it has 
occurred to me, could be most conveniently accomplished, by giv- 
ing, in connection with each clause, its origin and the modifications 
it underwent or which were proposed to be given to it, and a brief 
statement of the debate upon it, during its progress in the Con- 
vention, until it assumed the form in which it appears in the Con- 
stitution. To this is added the judicial construction, if any, that it 
has received. The convenience of this arrangement will be obvi- 
ous. The -framers of the Constitution were certainly the most 
competent to explain its intended import. If the original form of 
a proposition was changed, the change itself or the reason assigned 
for it, would indicate the object aimed at. If the clause had been 
contained in the Articles of Confederation, its retention in the 
Constitution was an evidence that it had already received a satis- 
factory, practical construction. 



EXPLANATION. 

In the following Analysis, each clause of the Constitution is 
placed at the head of a page, and is immediately followed by a 
notice of its origin. 

If the same or a similar power or provision had been contained 
in any of the Articles of Confederation, the article, or the portion 
of it containing the power, is inserted. 

Tliis is followed by the proceedings upon it, in the Convention, 
showing the form in which it was introduced, the modifications 
to which it was subjected, and a synopsis of the debate to which it 
gave rise, until it assumed its final shape and place in the Consti- 
tution. 

To this is appended an abstract of the judicial constructions 
which have been given to it. 

(36) 



AMLYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTIOIS[. 



PEEAMBLE. 

We, the people of the United States, in order to 
form a more perfect miion, establish justice, insure 
domestic tranquillity, provide for the common de- 
fence, promote the general welfare, and secure 
the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our pos- 
terity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for 
the United States of America. 



Confederation. — Articles of confederation and perpetual 
union between the States of New Hampshire, Massa- 
chusetts, &c. 

Mr. Randolph's Plan. ■ — " That the Articles of Confed- 
eration ought to be so corrected and enlarged as to 
accomphsh the objects proposed by their institution, 
namely, 'common defence, security of hberty, and gen- 
eral welfare.' " 

Mr. Pinckney's Plan. — " We, the people of the States 
of New Hampshire, Massachusetts, &c., do ordain, de- 
clare, and establish the following CONSTITUTION, for the 
government of ourselves and posterity." 

4 (37) 



38 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

In Committee of the Whole. — On motion of Mr. Ran- 
dolph, on the suggestion of Mr. G. Morris, it was, 

Resolved^ " That a national government ought to be 
established, consisting of a supreme legislative, executive, 
and judiciary." Yeas — Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, 
Delaware, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, 6. 
Nay — Connecticut. 

In this form it was reported to the Convention, when 
Mr. Patterson, on behalf of those members who desired 
to enlarge and improve the Articles of Confederation but 
not to establish a national government, proposed the fol- 
lowing substitute : — 

Resolved, " That the Articles of Confederation ought 
to be so revised, corrected, and enlarged as to render the 
Federal Constitution adequate to the exigencies of gov- 
ernment and the preservation of the Union." 

The two propositions being under discussion, Mr. Lan- 
sing stated the distinction to be, that the plan of Mr. 
Randolph "absorbed all power except what may be 
exercised in the little local matters," — while that of Mr. 
Patterson sustained "the sovereignty of the respective 
States." 

Mr. Randolph said, " The question is, whether we will 
adhere to the federal plan, or introduce the national one." 

On the question whether Mr. Randolph's plan should 
be adhered to, or that of Mr. Patterson substituted, — 
Massachusetts, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Vu-ginia, North 
Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia, 7, voted for the 
former ; and New York, New Jersey, and Delaware, 3, for 
the latter ; Maryland, divided. 

On motion of Mr. Ellsworth, the words "a govern- 
ment of the United States ^^ were substituted for "a 
national government^ 

It went in this form to the committee of detail, who 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 39 

reported, — " We, the people of the States of New Hamp- 
shire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New- 
York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, 
North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia, do ordain, 
declare, and estabhsh the following Constitution for the 
government of ourselves and our posterity." 

The committee of style and arrangement gave it the 
present form. No reason seems to have been assigned 
for the change. 



Judicial Constructions. — The Constitution of the United 
States was ordained and established, not by the United 
States in their sovereign capacities, but, as the preamble 
declares, by the people of the United States. 

It was competent for the people to invest the national 
government with aU the powers they might deem proper 
and necessary, and to give them paramount and supreme 
authority. The people had a right to prohibit to the 
States the exercise of any powers, &c., and to reserve to 
themselves those sovereign powers which they might not 
choose to delegate to either. 

The Constitution was not, therefore, carved out of ex- 
isting State sovereignties, nor a surrender of powers 
already existing in the State governments. On the other 
hand, the sovereign powers vested in the State govern- 
ments by their respective constitutions, remain unaltered 
and unimpaired, except so far as they are granted to the 
government of the United States. 

The government of the United States can claim no 
powers which are not granted to it by the Constitution, 
either expressly or by necessary implication. 

The Constitution, like every other grant, is to have a 
reasonable construction, according to the import of its 



40 ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTIOlir. 

terms. Martin v. Hunter's Lessee, 1 "Wheat. 304, 324, 
380. 

The United States is a government, and, consequently, a 
body politic and corporate, capable of attaining the 
objects for which it was created, by means which are 
necessary for their attainment. United States v. Maurice, 
2 Brock. 109. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 41 



ARTICLE I 



SECTION I. 



All legislative powers herein granted shall be 
vested in a Congress of the United States, which 
shall consist of a Senate and House of Represent- 
atives. 



The Continental Congress of 1774 — the first "general 
Congress" of the colonies — seems to have been orig- 
inally proposed by the committee of correspondence of 
the Sons of Liberty of the city of New York, in May 
of that year. It assembled at Philadelphia, September 
6th, and continued to meet annually until the adoption of 
the present Constitution. 

On the 21st July, 1775, Dr. Franklin submitted to 
Congress the sketch of " Articles of Confederation," the 
fourth article of -which provides : — 

" That delegates shall be annually elected in each col- 
ony, to meet in general Congress, at such times and 
places as shall be agTeed on in the next preceding Con- 
gress." 

This provision is substantially retained in the " Article 
of Confederation" (5th), adopted by Congress in 1777, 
and subsequently ratified by the several States. 

In Federal Convention. Mr. Randolph's Plan. — 
" That the national legislature ought to consist of two 
branches." 

4* 



42 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

« 

Mr. Pinckney's Plan. — " The legislative power shall be 
vested in a Congress, to consist of two separate Houses, 
one to be called the House of Delegates, and the other the 
Senate." 

Mr. Lansing moved, " That the powers of legislation 
be vested in the United States in Congress." 

The debate on this motion turned upon the question 
whether- the principle of confederation was to be retained, 
or a national government established. 

The following extracts are taken from the " Madison 
Papers," Elliot's edition, vol. 5, p. 214 et seq. 

Mr. Lansing " observed, that the true question here 
was, whether the Convention would adhere to, or depart 
from, the foundation of the present confederacy." 

Col. Mason supported Mr. Randolph's plan, but ob- 
served that, " notwithstanding his solicitude to establish a 
national government, he would never agree to abolish the 
State governments, or render them absolutely insignificant." 

Mr. Luther Martin " agreed with Col. Mason as to 
the importance of the State governments : he would sup- 
port them at the expense of the general government, 
which was instituted for the purpose of that support. 
He saw no necessity for two branches At the sep- 
aration from the British empire, the people of America 
preferred the establishment of themselves into thirteen 
separate sovereignties, instead of incorporating them- 
selves into one. To these they look for the security of 
their lives, liberties, and properties — to these they must 
look up. The federal government they formed to defend 
the whole against foreign nations in time of war, and to 
defend the lesser States against the ambition of the 
larger." 

Mr. Sherman, of Connecticut, " seconded and sup- 
ported Mr. Lansing's motion. He admitted two branches 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION". 43 

to be necessary in the State legislatures, but saw no 
necessity" in a confederacy of States. Congress carried us 
through the war, and perhaps as well as any government 
could have done. ... If another branch were to be added 
to Congress, it would serve to embarrass them. The dis- 
parity of States, in point of size, he perceived, was the 
main difficulty. But the large States had not yet suffered 
from the equality of votes enjoyed by the smaller ones." 

" If the difficulty on the subject of representation can- 
not be otherwise got over, he would agree to have two 
branches, and a proportional representation in one of them, 
provided each State had an equal voice in the other. This 
was necessary to secure the rights of the lesser States. 
Each State had its peculiar habits, usages, and manners, 
which constituted its happiness." [This appears to have 
been the first suggestion of the idea upon which the two 
Houses of Congress were ultimately organized.] 

Mr. Wilson, of Pennsylvania, urged the necessity of 
two branches. He admitted that the large States did 
accede to the confederation in its present form ; but it 
was the effect of necessity, not of choice. 

Dr. Johnson. — " On comparison of the two plans which 
had been proposed from Virginia and New Jersey, it 
appeared that the peculiarity which characterized the 
latter, was its being calculated to preserve the individual- 
ity of the States. Mr. WHson and the gentleman from 
Virginia (Col. Mason) . . . wished to leave the States in 
possession of a considerable, though subordinate jurisdic- 
tion." 

Mr. Madison " was of opinion, in the first place, that 
there was less danger of encroachment from the general 
government than from the State governments ; and in the 
second place, that the mischiefs from encroachments 
would be less fatal if made by the former, than if made 
by the latter." 



44 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

Mr. Randolph's resolution was agreed to. Yeas — 
Massachusetts, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Virginia, N. 
Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, 7. Nays — New 
York, New Jersey, Delaware, 3. 

The committee of the whole reported the clause in 
the following form : — 

" That the national legislature ought to consist of two 
branches. That each branch ought to possess the right to 
originate acts." 

On motion of Mr. Ellsworth, the words " the United 
States " were substituted for the word " national." 

As reported by the committee of detail : — 

" The legislative power shall be vested in a Congress, to 
consist of two separate and distinct bodies of men, a 
House of Representatives and a Senate ; each of which 
shall in all cases have a negative on the other." 

On motion of Mr. Madison, the last clause of the sen- 
tence was stricken out. 

It was then referred to the committee of style, who 
reported it in its present form. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 45 



ARTICLE I. 

SECTION 11. 

Clause 1. — The House of Representatives shall be 
composed of members chosen every second year 
by the people of the several States, and the elec- 
tors in each State shall have the qualifications 
requisite for electors of the most numerous branch 
of the State legislature. 

Clause 2. — No person shall be a representative who 
shall not have attained the age of twenty-five 
years, and have been seven years a citizen of the 
United States, and who shall not, when elected, 
be an inhabitant of that State in which he shall 
be chosen. 



Articles of Confederation. — Delegates shaU be annually 
appointed, in such manner as the legislature of each 
State shall direct, . . . with a power reserved to each 
State ±Q recall its delegates or any of them, at any time 
within the year, and to send others in their stead for the 
remainder of the year. 

In Federal Convention. Mr. Randolph's Plan. — " That 
the members of the first branch of the national legislature 
ought to be elected by the people of the several States, 

every for the term of , to be of the age of 

years at least ; to be incapable of reelection for the 



46 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

space "of years after the expiration of their term of 

service, and to be subject to recall." 

Mr. Charles Pinckney's Plan. — " The members of the 

House of Delegates shall be chosen every year, and 

the qualification of the electors shall be the same as those 
of the electors in the several States for their legislatures. 
Each member shall have been a citizen of the United 

States for years, and shaU be of age, and a 

resident in the State he is chosen for." 

On the question for an election of the first branch of 
the national legislature by the people. Yeas — Massa- 
chusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, North Caro- 
lina, and Georgia, 6. Nays — New Jersey, South Caro- 
ina, 2. Connecticut and Delaware, divided. 

Mr. Charles Pinckney proposed, — " That the first 
branch of the national legislature be elected by the State 
legislatures and not by the people," which was dis- 
agreed to. 

General C. C. Pinckney proposed, — That the election 
should be "in such manner as the legislature of each 
State should direct." 

This proposition having been rejected, the question was 
taken on the election " by the people " and it was agreed 
to. Yeas — Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, 
Virginia, North Carolina, and Georgia, 6. Nays — New 
Jersey, South CaroKna, 2. 

On motion of Mr. Randolph, the term of service was 
fixed at two years^ and the clause adopted. 



Judicial Constructions. — An inhabitant of a State, is 
one who is, bona fide, a member of the State, subject to 
aU the requisitions of its laws, and entitled to aU the 
privileges and advantages which they confer. BaUey's 
case, CI. & HaU, 411. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 47 

A person residing in the District of Columbia, though 
in the employment of the general government, is not an 
inhabitant of a State, so as to be eligible to a seat in 
Congress. Ibid. 

A public minister residing at a foreign court, does not 
lose his character as an inhabitant of his State. Ibid. 
497. 

It has been repeatedly settled by both houses of Con- 
gress, that, the constitution having fixed the qualifications 
of members, no additional qualifications can rightfully be 
required by the States. Ibid. 167. 

The House of Representatives has jurisdiction to pun- 
ish for contempt. Anderson v. Dunn, 6 Wheaton, 204. 

A warrant of arrest, under the hand and seal of the 
speaker, attested by the clerk and directed to the sergeant- 
at-arms, is legal, although it does not show on its face, 
on what evidence it was founded, nor set forth specially 
in what the alleged contempt consists. Ibid. 



48 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 



ARTICLE I. 

SECTION II. 

Clause 3. — Representatives and direct taxes shall be 
apportioned among the several States which may 
be included within this Union, according to their 
respective numbers, which shall be determined by 
adding to the whole number of free persons, in- 
cluding those bound to service for a term of years, 
and excluding Indians not taxed, three-fifths of all 
other persons. 

The first American Congress assembled at Philadelphia 
on the 5th day of September, 1774. The next day (Sep- 
tember 6th), they passed the following resolution, being 
their first legislative act : — 

" Resolved, That in determining questions in Congress, 
each colony or province shall have one vote. The Congress 
not being possessed of, or at present able to procm-e, 
proper materials for ascertaining the importance of each 
colony." 

This great principle of State equality was firmly main- 
tained through aU the vicissitudes of the Revolution and 
until its partial surrender in the above article of the Con- 
stitution, notwithstanding often repeated efforts and strug- 
gles by the larger States, to subvert it. 

On the 21st July, 1775, Dr. Franklin introduced a plan 
for a confederation, embracing the following : — 

" The number of delegates to be elected and. sent to 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 49 

Congress by each colony shall be regulated by the num- 
ber of male polls [between 16 and 60 years]." 

In providing for the redemption of the paper-money 
issued by Congress, it was provided — 

" That the proportion or quota of each colony be deter- 
mined according to the number of inhabitants of all ages, 
including negroes and mulattoes in each colony." 

The subject was again agitated for a considerable time, 
and with great earnestness in the session of 1777. It was 
proposed that the smaU States of Rhode Island, Delaware, 
and Georgia, should each have one vote ; and the other 
States, one vote for every 50,000 white inhabitants. Vir- 
ginia and Pennsylvania alone supported this motion. It 
was then moved that each State should have one vote for 
every 30,000, which was supported by Virginia alone. It 
was then proposed that the representation should be in 
proportion to the taxes paid by each colony, which was 
negatived by the same vote. 

Finally, after a protracted struggle of some six or eight 
weeks, aU the States except Virginia, yielded to the prin- 
ciple of State equality, and the following article divested 
of the apparent qualification appended to the original 
resolution, was adopted in the Articles of Confedera- 
tion : — 

" In determining questions in the United States, in 
Congress assembled, each State shall have one vote." 

The general treasury was to be " supplied by the several 
States in proportion to the value of all lands, within each 
State, granted to or surveyed for any person . . . together 
with the buildings and improvements." 

On the 6th of March, 1783, the Committee on Revenue 
reported to Congress a series of resolutions on the means 
of supplying the treasury, one of which proposed to sub- 
stitute for the above — that the common treasury should 

5 



50 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

be supplied by the several States " in proportion to the 
number of inhabitants, of every ag-e, sex, and condition, ex- 
cept Indians not paying taxes, in each State,^^ and excluding 
also "persons who are bound to servitude for life according 
to the laws of the State to which they belong,^'' — except 
those between certain ages. 

It was proposed to accomplish the object of the latter 
part of the clause by substituting, " that two blacks be 
counted as one freeman." 

Mr. Wilson and Mr. Clark said they were members of 
Congress when the article was adopted, and that the 
Southern States were then willing to agree to the mode 
now proposed, but that the Eastern States would not con- 
sent that only half the slaves should be counted. 

Mr. WoLCOTT proposed, "that four slaves be rated as 
three freemen." 

Mr. Carroll proposed, " that four slaves be rated as one 
freeman." 

Mr. Williamson, of North Carolina, thought they should 
be excluded altogether, as being an incumbrance, instead 
of increasing the ability to pay taxes. 

Mr. RuTLEDGE, of South Carolina, would consent to the 
proportion of two to one, but he thought three to one a 
"juster proportion." 

Ml". Madison proposed, as a compromise, " that slaves 
should be rated as five to threeP This was seconded by 
Mr. R,UTLEDGE and agreed to. Yeas — New Hampshire, 
New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, North 
Carohna, and South Carolina, 7. Nays — Rhode Island 
and Connecticut, 2. Massachusetts divided. It was finally 
agreed to by eleven States. 

In Federal Convention. Mr. Randolph's Plan. — 
" That the rights of suffrage in the national legislature 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 51 

ought to be proportioned to the quotas of contribution, or 
to the number of free inhabitants." 

Mr. Pinckney's Plan, proposed to regulate the number 
of delegates by " the number of inhabitants of every de- 
scription." 

Mr. Read stated, that the instructions of the members 
from Delaware restrained them from assenting to any 
change of the rule of suffrage. 

Mr. Madison observed, " that, whatever reason might 
have existed for the equality of suffrage when the Union 
was a federal one, among sovereign States, it must cease 
when a national government should be put in its place." 

After it had been determined that the legislature should 
consist of two branches, 

Mr. Sherman suggested, " that the proportion of suffrage 
in the first branch should be according to the respective 
numbers of free inhabitants." 

Mr. Rutledge proposed to substitute, " according to the 
quotas of conti'ibution." 

These propositions were postponed for a motion by Mr. 
Wilson, seconded by Mr. C. Pinckney, that the right of 
suffrage in this branch of the legislature, should be " in 
proportion to the whole number of white and other free 
citizens and inhabitants, of every age, sex, and condition, 
including those bound to service for a term of years, and 
three fifths of all other persons, not comprehended in the 
foregoing descriptions, except Indians, not paying taxes in 
each State." Which was agreed to — New Jersey and 
Delaware only in the negative. 

The committee of the whole, having reported this 
proposition to the House, Mr. Lansing moved to modify 
it so as to give each State an equal vote. After a long 
and somewhat exciting debate, the motion was rejected. 
Yeas — Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, and Delaware, 



52 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

4. Nays — Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Virginia, North 
Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, 6. The clause as 
reported was then agreed to. 

The compromise committee on the mode of constituting 
the Senate reported, by way of concession to the small 
States for being allowed an equal vote in the second 
branch, the following : — 

" That in the first branch of the legislature, each of the 
States now in the Union shall be allowed one member for 
every forty thousand inhabitants of the description reported 
in the seventh resolution of the committee of the whole 
House : that each State not containing that number shall 
be allowed one member : that all bills for raising or appro- 
priating money and for fixing salaries of officers of gov- 
ernment shaU originate in the first branch of the legis- 
lature and shall not be altered or amended by the second 
branch, and that no money shall be drawn from the public 
treasury but in pursuance of appropriation to be originated 
in the first branch." 

Mr. G. Morris objected to the ratio of one for every 
40,000, and thought property should be taken into ac- 
count. 

Mr. RuTLEDGE concurred with Mr. Morris, and proposed 
" that the suffrages of the several States be regulated and 
proportioned according to the sums to be paid towards 
the general revenue by the inhabitants of each State re- 
spectively," &c. 

South Carolina alone supported this proposition. 

The clause, on motion of Mr. G. Morris, was committed 
to a new committee, namely, Morris, Gorham, Randolph, 
Rutledge, and King. 

This committee reported, " that, in the first meeting of 
the legislature, the first branch thereof consist of fifty-six 
members ; of which number New Hampshire shall have 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 53 

2, Massachusetts 7, Rhode Island 1, Connecticut 4, New 
York 5, New Jersey 3, Pennsylvania 8, Delaware 1, Mary- 
land 4, Virginia 9, North Carolina 5, South Carolina 5, 
Georgia 2." 

" But as the present situation of the States may prob- 
ably alter, as well in the point of wealth as in the number 
of their inhabitants, that the legislature be authorized, 
from time to time to augment the number of representa- 
tives. And in case any of the States shall hereafter be 
divided, or any two or more States united, or any new 
States created within the limits of the United States, the 
legislature shall possess authority to regulate the number 
of representatives in any of the foregoing cases, upon the 
principles of their wealth and number of inhabitants." 

The second paragraph of the report was agreed to, yeas 
9, nays 2. 

The first paragraph being under consideration, Mr. 
Sherman moved to refer it to a committee of one from 
each State. 

Mr. Williamson " thought it would be necessary to re- 
turn to the rule of numbers." 

Mr. Patterson. — " What is the true principle of repre- 
sentation ? It is an expedient, by which an assembly of 
certain individuals, chosen by the people, is substituted in 
the place of the inconvenient meeting of the people them- 
selves." 

Mr. Madison remarked, that Mr. Patterson's " doctrine 
of representation, which was, in its principle, the genuine 
one, must forever silence the pretensions of the smaU 
States to an equality of votes with the large ones. They 
ought to vote in the same proportion in which their citi- 
zens would do if the people of all the States were collec- 
tively met." 

Mr. King " had always expected that, as the Southern 
5* 



54 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

States are the richest, they would not league themselves 
with the Northern, unless some respect was paid to their 
superior wealth." 

The commitment was then carried. 

The committee reported, adding one member each to 
New Hampshire, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, 
Virginia, and Georgia, and two to Maryland. 

General Pinckney and Mr. Williamson objected that 
the southern interests would be endangered by this ar- 
rangement. 

The report of the committee was adopted. 



Judicial Constructions. — A tax on carriages is not a 
direct tax, within the meaning of the Constitution. 3 Dall. 
171. 

This does not exclude the right to impose a direct tax 
on the District of Columbia. Loughborough v. Blake, 5 
Wheaton, 317. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 55 



ARTICLE I. 



SECTION II. 



Clause 4. — The actual enumeration shall be made 
within three years after the first meeting of the 
Congress of the United States, and within every 
subsequent term of ten years, in such manner as 
they shall by law direct. 



Appropriation was made, in the Congress of the Con- 
federation, in March, 1783, for a triennial census to be 
taken, of the number of inhabitants of every age, sex, and 
condition, except Indians not taxed in each State ; pro- 
vided, that no persons should be included who were bound 
to servitude for life ; in proportion to which the common 
treasury was to be supplied. 

In Federal Convention. — Mr. Pincknet's Plan of a 
Constitution, provides for a periodical census " of the 
whole number of inhabitants of every description," as the 
basis of direct taxation. 

A committee having reported that the legislature should 
have power to regulate the number of representatives to 
which each State should be entitled, " upon the principle 
of their wealth and number of inhabitants," — 

Mr. Randolph moved that " the legislature should be 
required to cause a census and estimate [of population 
and wealth] to be taken within one year after its first 



56 . ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

meeting ; and every years thereafter ; and that the 

legislature arrange the representation accordingly." 

Mr. Williamson proposed to amend, by having the 
census show the number " of free white inhabitants, and 
three fifths of those of other descriptions." 

" Three fifths," &c. was stricken out, and the blank 
filled with " fifteen." The proposition was subsequently 
modified so as to require the first census to be taken within 
six years^ and every ten years thereafter, " of all the inhab- 
itants, in the manner and according to the ratio recom- 
mended by Congress, in their resolution of 18th April, 
1783 [rating the blacks at three fifths of their number]," 
which prevailed. Yeas — Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Ma- 
ryland, Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia, 6. Nays — New 
Jersey, Delaware, 2. Divided — Massachusetts, South 
Carolina, 2. 

On motion of Mr. Ellsworth, " three years " was sub- 
stituted for " six yearsP 



Under the seventh census (1850), the States are entitled 
to the following representation in the House of Repre- 
sentatives, namely : — 

Alabama, 7. Louisiana, 4. 

Arkansas, 2. Maine, 6. 

California, 2. Maryland, 6. 

Connecticut, 4. Massachusetts, 11. 

Delaware, 1. Michigan, 4. 

Florida, 1. [Mississippi, 5. 

Georgia, 8. Missouri, 7. 

Illinois, 9. New Hampshire, 3. 

Indiana, 1 1. New Jersey, 5. 

Iowa, .2. New York, 33. 

Kentucky, 10. North Carolina, 8. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 57 

Ohio, 21. Tennessee, 10. 

Oregon, 1. Texas, 2. 

Pennsylvania, 25. Vermont, 3. 

Rhode Island, 2. Virginia, 13. 

South Carolina, 6. Wisconsin, 3. 

By the act of 23d May, 1850 (9 Stat. 432), the House 
of Representatives is hereafter to consist of two hundred 
and thirty-three members, to be apportioned among the sev- 
eral States, after the taking of each census, in accordance 
with the provisions of the Constitution, by the Secretary 
of the Interior. The representatives from new States, ad- 
mitted into the Union subsequently to each apportion- 
ment, are to be in addition to the above number ; but such 
additional number is only to continue until the next ap- 
portionment. 



58 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTIOISr. 



ARTICLE I. 



SECTION II. 



Clause 5. — The number of Representatives shall not 
exceed one for every thirty thousand, but each 
State shall have at least one Representative ; and 
until such enumeration shall be made, the State 
of New Hampshire shall be entitled to choose 
three, Massachusetts eight, Rhode Island and 
Providence Plantations one, Connecticut five, 
New York six, New Jersey four, Pennsylvania 
eight, Delaware one, Maryland six, Virginia ten, 
North Carolina five, South Carolina five, and 
Georgia three. 

When vacancies happen in the Representation from 
any State, the Executive authority thereof shall 
issue writs of election to fill such vacancies. 

Clause 6. — The House of Representatives shall 
choose their Speaker and other officers ; and shall 
have the sole power of impeachment. 



In Federal Convention. — The subject of this clause 
being under consideration, — 

Mr. Dickinson " supposed the sums paid in each would 
form a better ratio " for the House of Representatives, 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 59 

" than either the number of inhabitants or the quantum of 
property." 

Mr. Sherman proposed, — " the respective numbers of 
the free inhabitants." 

Mr. Gerry, from the grand committee, to whom the 
subject had been referred, reported : — 

" That in the first branch of the legislature, each of the 
States now in the Union shaU be allowed one representa- 
tive for every forty thousand inhabitants of the descrip- 
tion " described in the third clause of this section, as the 
basis of taxation ; and that " vacancies shall be supplied 
by writs of election from the executive authority of the 
State." 

On motion of Mr. Dickinson, — " Provided that each 
State shaU have one representative at least," — was 
added. 

The clause in this form was referred to a special com- 
mittee, who reported, " That the first House consist of 
fifty-six members, to be subsequently regulated by the 
legislature, upon the principles of the wealth and num- 
ber of inhabitants." It was finally adopted as reported 
by the grand committee, with Mr. Dickinson's amend- 
ment. 

After its engrossment, Mr. Gorham said, " If it was not 
too late, he could wish, for the purpose of lessening the 
objections to the Constitution, that the clause declaring 
that ' the number of representatives shall not exceed one 
for every forty thousand,' which had produced so much 
discussion, might yet be reconsidered, in order to strike 
out ' forty thousand,' and insert ' thirty thousand.' " 

Mr. King and Mr. Carroll supported the motion. 

General Washington said, " Although his situation had 
hitherto restrained him from offering his sentiments on 
questions depending in the House, and, it might be 



60 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

thought, ought now to impose silence on him, yet he 
could not forbear expressing his wish that the alteration 
proposed might take place. It was much to be desired, 
that objections to the plan recommended might be made 
as few as possible. The smaUness of the proportion of rep- 
resentatives, had been considered by many members of 
the convention an insufficient security for the rights and 
interests of the people. He acknowledged that it had 
always appeared to himself among the exceptional parts 
of the plan ; and late as the present moment was for 
admitting amendments, he thought this of so much con- 
sequence that it would give him much satisfaction to see 
it adopted." 

Mr. Madison says this was the only occasion in which 
General Washington entered at all into the discussions 
of the Convention. 

The reconsideration was carried and the amendment 
agreed to. 



Judicial Construction. — The executive of a State may 
receive the resignation of a member and issue v^nrits for 
new election, without waiting to be informed by the 
House that a vacancy exists. Mercer's case, CI. & Hall, 
44 ; Edwards's case, id. 46. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 61 



ARTICLE I, 



SECTION ni. 



Clause 1. — The Senate of the United States shall be 
composed of two Senators from each State, chosen 
by the legislature thereof, for six years ; and each 
Senator shall have one vote. 



In Federal Convention. Mr. Randolph's Plan. — " That 
the second [or senatorial] branch of the national legislature 
ought to be elected by those of the first, out of a proper 
number of persons nominated by the individual legisla- 
tures ; to be of the age of years at least, to hold their 

offices for a term sufficient to insure their independency ; 
to receive liberal stipends, by which they may be compen- 
sated for the devotion of their time to the public service, 
and to be ineligible to any office established by a particu- 
lar State, or under the authority of the United States, 
except those peculiarly belonging to the functions of the 
second branch, during the term of service and for the space 
of years after the expiration thereof." 

Mr. C. Pinckney's Plan. — " The Senate shall be elected 
and chosen by the House of Delegates [or Representatives]." 
[To be apportioned amongst the States and classified.] 

In Committee of the Whole. — Me. Spaight, of N. C, 
moved to amend, so as to give the election of Senators to 
the State legislatures — but subsequently withdrew it. 

6 



62 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTIOH". 

The propositions for electing Senators by the House of 
Representatives, out of nominations by the State legisla- 
tures, were negatived. 

Mr. Dickinson renewed Mr. Spaight's proposition for 
the election of the second branch by the State legislatures. 

[Mr, Read, of Delaware, proposed that " the Senate 
should be appointed by the executive magistrate out of a 
proper number of persons, to be nominated by the State 
legislatures." Not seconded.] 

Mr. Madison opposed Mr. Dickinson's motion, as it 
involved a departure from the doctrine of proportional 
representation, which was inadmissible, being evidently 
unjust — or would make the Senate too numerous a body, 

Mr. PiNCKNEY, of S. C, suggested a proposition for 
dividing the States into three classes, according to their 
respective sizes, and for allowing the first class three sena- 
tors, the second class two, and the third class one. 

Mr. Dickinson's motion prevailed. 

On Mr. Sherman's motion, the direct question was 
taken whether each State should have an equal vote in 
the Senate, and it was decided in the negative. Yeas — 
Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Delaware, and Ma- 
ryland, 5. Nays — Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Virginia, 
North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia, 6. 

The question was then taken, on the proposition for 
making the ratio of representation in the Senate the same 
as had been fixed on for the House of Representatives, 
and it passed in the affirmative. Yeas — Massachusetts, 
Pennsylvania, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, 
and Georgia, 6 ; the rest nay. 

Mr. Gerry moved to restrain the Senate from originat- 
ing money bills. Negatived. 

Mr. Hamilton suggested his plan, namely : " The Senate 
to consist of persons elected to serve during good behavior ; 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 63 

their election to be made by electors chosen for that pur- 
pose by the people, from election districts. To have the 
sole power of declaring war ; the power of advising and 
approving aU treaties ; the power of approving or rejecting 
all appointments of officers, except the heads or chiefs of 
the departments of finance, war, and foreign affairs." 

Mr. Hamilton, before the close of the session of the 
Convention, modified his views and advocated short terms 
of office, both for the President and Senators. 

The committee of the whole reported the clause in the 
following form : — 

" The members of the second branch of the national 
legislature ought to be chosen by the individual legisla- 
tures ; to be of the age of thirty years at least ; to hold 
their offices for a term sufficient to insure their inde- 
pendence, namely, seven years. 

" That the right of suffi-age in the second branch of the 
national legislature ought to be according to the rule 
established for the ffi'st." 

This report being under consideration, the following 
proceedings were had : — 

The word national was stricken out and " United 
States" inserted. The two first clauses — as to mode of 
election and age were agreed to. 

Mr. GoRHAM moved to reduce the term of service to 
" four years," one fourth to be elected every year. 

Mr. Randolph concurred in the suggestion of "rota- 
tion," " as the body might be always sitting and aiding 
the Executive," and moved to add, after the words " seven 
years," the words, " to go out in fixed proportion," which 
was agreed to. 

Mr. Williamson suggested " six years," as the term of 
service. 

Mr. Read suggested " during good behavior," and 



64 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

General Pincknet, " four years." 

The words " seven years " were stricken out, in order to 
allow a vote on these several propositions. 

The question was then taken on inserting " six years," 
and lost. Yeas — Connecticut, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, 
Delaware, Virginia, 5. Nays — Massachusetts, New York, 
North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, 5. 

" Five years," was moved and lost. 

Mr. GoRHAM renewed the motion for " six years," " one 
third to go out every second year." 

Mr. Read moved " nine years." 

Mr. Madison favored Mr. Read's motion. He did not 
conceive that the term of nine years could threaten any 
real danger, — but he should require that the long term 
allowed to the second branch should not commence till 
such a period of life as would render a perpetual disquali- 
fication to be reelected, little inconvenient either in a 
pubhc or private view. 

On the question for " nine years," Pennsylvania, Dela- 
ware, and Virginia, yea ; all the rest nay. 

" Six years," was then agreed to. 

The proportional representation in the first branch 
(House of Representatives) having been agreed to, 

Mr. Ellsworth moved, that " the rule of suffrage in the 
senatorial branch be the same with that established by 
the Articles of Confederation," — to wit: each State to 
have one vote. 

After a very exciting debate, of several days' duration, 
in which Messrs. Ellsworth, Sherman, Dayton, Bedford, 
and others advocated the motion ; and Messrs. Baldwin, 
Wilson, Madison, King, and Martin opposed it; and in 
which Mr. Ellsworth said, " To the eastward he was sure 
that Massachusetts was the only State that would listen 
to a proposition for excluding the States as equal political 



AITALTSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 65 

societies, from an equal voice in both branches of the 
legislature ; " " the others would risk every consequence 
rather than part with so dear a right." 

Mr. Madison remarked, that under the operation of the 
equality principle, " a majority of States might injure a 
majority of the people," — " they could obstruct their 
wishes." " But he contended that the States were divided 
into different interests, not by their difference of size, but 
by other circumstances ; the most material of which re- 
sulted partly from climate, but principally from the effect 
of their having or not having slaves. That the division 
of interests did not lie between the large and small States, 
but between the northern and southern." 

Mr. King said, " Should this wonderful illusion (of 
State rights) continue to prevail, his mind was prepared 
for every event, rather than sit down under a government 
founded on a vicious principle of representation, and which 
must be as short-lived as it would be unjust ; " " he never 
could listen to an equality of votes as proposed in the 
motion." 

Mr. Martin, " would never confederate if it could not 
be done on just principles." 

On the 2d of July, the question was taken. In favor of 
giving an equal vote to each State, in the Senate, were 
the States of Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Dela- 
ware, and Maryland ; and against it, were the States of 
Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Virginia, North Carolina, 
and South CaroKna ; Georgia was divided. Thus show- 
ing an equal division. 

Mr. Ellsworth's amendment having been thus lost by 
an equal division, the question recurred on the propor- 
tional representation, as reported from the committee of 
the whole. 

Mr. PiNCKNEY, of South Carohnaj " thought an equal- 
6* 



66 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

ity of vote in the second branch inadmissible ; " that 
" there is a real distinction between the northern and the 
southern interests," — and that " the larger States were 
entitled to some, but not a full proportion." 

He renewed his proposition previously submitted, 
namely : " The Senate shall be elected and chosen by 
the House of Delegates ; which house, immediately after 

their meeting, shall choose, by ballot, senators from 

among the citizens and residents of New Hampshne ; 

from among those of Massachusetts," &c., through 

the States, — " to be divided into classes, and one class to 
go out every year." 

Gen. PiNCKNEY. — " Although he did not entirely ap- 
prove the proposition, was willing it should be considered. 
Some compromise seemed to be necessary, the States 
being exactly divided on the question of an equality of 
votes in the second branch." 

He proposed that a committee, consisting of a member 
from each State, should be appointed to devise and report 
a compromise. 

IMr. Luther Martin, of Maryland, said "he had no 
objection to a commitment, but no modification could 
reconcile the smaller States to the least diminution of 
their equal sovereignty." 

Mr. Gouverneur Morris was for commitment for other 
reasons. He wished to make the Senate a permanent 
body. He said, " It must have great personal property ; 
it must have the aristocratic spirit," and therefore its tenure 
of office " should be for life." 

Mr. Randolph " favored a commitment, but did not 
expect much good to result. He warned the small States 
of the danger to them of a failure to unite." 

Mr. Wilson and Mr. Madison objected to commitment 
to such a committee, " because it would decide according 



ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTION. 67 

to that rule of voting which was opposed on one side." 
The commitment was carried — yeas 9, nays 2. 

The committee reported the following compromise : — 

1. " That, in the first branch of the legislature, each of 
the States now in the Union, shall be allowed one mem- 
ber for every forty thousand inhabitants, of the descrip- 
tion reported in the seventh resolution of the committee 
of the whole house [see Article H. R.] — that each 
State not containing that number shall be allowed one 
member : that all bills for raising or appropriating money, 
and for fixing the salaries of officers of the government of 
the United States, shall originate in the first branch of 
the legislatm'c, and shall not be altered or amended in the 
second branch ; and that no money shall be drawn from 
the public treasury but in pm-suance of appropriations to 
be originated in the first branch. 

2. " That in the second branch each State shall have an 
equal vote." 

Note. — Mr. Madison says tMs report was founded on a motion made 
in the committee by Dr. Franklin. 

Mr. Madison strongly opposed the report. " He con- 
ceived that the convention was reduced to the alternative 
of either departing from justice in order to conciliate the 
smaller States and the minority of the people of the 
United States, or of displeasing these by justly gratifying 
the larger States and the majority of the people. He 
could not hesitate as to the option he ought to make. 
The convention, with justice and a majority of the people 
on their side, had nothing to fear." 

Mr. Butler " urged that the second branch ought to 
represent the States according to their property." 

Mr. Williamson, of North CaroHna, " thought the prop- 
osition the most objectionable of any he had yet heard." 



68 AlfALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

Mr. Mason favored the general principles of the report, 
and deprecated the consequences to the country, of a 
dissolution of the Convention without any thing being 
done 

On the question — " shall the clause allowing each State 
one vote in the second branch, stand as a part of the 
report ? " Yeas — Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, 
Delaware, Maryland, North Carolina, 6. Nays — Penn- 
sylvania, Virginia, South Carolina, 3. Divided — Massa- 
chusetts, Georgia, 2. 

Mr. Williamson said, " The State of North Carolina 
had agreed to an equality in the Senate, merely in con- 
sideration that money biUs should be confined to the 
other house." 

Note. — It is a curious fact, that on all these questions, involving the 
equality of States, as political communities. New York is invariably found 
sustaining and acting in harmony with the small States — voting to allow 
them an equal voice with herself in the federal government — while Vir- 
ginia and South Carolina contend for the proportional representation. 

At a subsequent stage of the proceedings — 
Mr. PiNCKNET moved, " that instead of an equality of 
votes, the States should be represented in the second 
branch as follows : New Hampshire two members, Massa- 
chusetts fom-," &c., being a modified classification. 

Mr. Madison, in advocating this motion, summed up his 
objection to an equal representation of the States in the 
Senate as foUows, namely : " 1. The minority could nega- 
tive the will of a majority of the people. 2. They could 
extort measures, by making them a condition of their 
assent to other necessary measures. 3. They could ob- 
trude measures on a majority by virtue of the peculiar 
powers which would be vested in the Senate. 4. The 
evil, instead of being cured by time, would increase with 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 69 

every new State that should be admitted, as they mtist alJ 
be admitted on the principle of equality. 5. The per- 
petuity it would give to the preponderance of the northern 
against the southern scale." 

The motion of Mr. Pinckney was rejected ; Pennsylva- 
nia, Maryland, Virginia, and South Carolina, 4, voting for 
it ; and Massachusetts, Delaware, Cormecticut, New Jer- 
sey, North Carolina, and Georgia, 6, against it. 

The question was then taken on agreeing to the report 
of the committee of the whole house, as modified, the sub- 
stantial points of which were, the equal vote in the Senate 
and a representation in the House of Representatives, in 
proportion to the population, counting slaves as three to 
five — and it passed in the affirmative by the following 
vote. Yeas — Connecticut, New Jersey, Delaware, Mary- 
land, North Carolina, 5. Nays — Pennsylvania, Virginia, 
South Carolina, Georgia, 4. Massachusetts divided. So 
that this greatest and most difficult of all the important 
questions which the Convention was called upon to solve, 
was carried by less than a majority of the States present, 
and by the concurrence of less than one third of the repre- 
sented population. 

GouvERNEUR MoRRis movcd that the representation in 
the second branch consist of three members from each 
State, to vote per capita. 

Mr. GoRHAM suggested "two" as the better number, 
which was concurred in, and as thus amended the propo- 
sition was agreed to. 

Report of Committee on Detail. — Art. 5, sec. 1. The 
Senate of the United States shall be chosen by the legis- 
latures of the several States. 

Each legislature shall choose two members. 

Each member shall have one vote. 



70 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION". 

Classification as in the Constitution. In this form it 
went to the committee on style. 



Constructions hy the Senate. — Where the election is by 
a joint convention of the two houses of the legislature, it 
is not necessary that there should be a concurrent majority 
of each house in favor of the candidate declared to be 
elected. Cameron's case, U. S. Senate, 13th March, 1857. 

The election, however, must be substantially by both 
houses, as distinct bodies ; the mere fact that a majority 
of the joint body, or even of each body, is present, does 
not constitute the aggregate body a legislature, unless the 
two bodies, acting separately, have voted to meet, and 
have actually met accordingly. Harlan's case, U. S. S., 
12th Jan. 1857. 

The Senate is a permanent body ; its existence is con- 
tinual and perpetual. Cushing's Law of Legislative As- 
semblies, 19. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 71 



ARTICLE I. 

SECTION III. 

Clause 2. — Immediately after they shall be assem- 
bled in consequence of the first election, they shall 
be divided as equally as may be into three 
classes. The seats of the Senators of the first class 
shall be vacated at the expiration of the second 
year, of the second class at the expiration of the 
fourth year, and of the third class at the expira- 
tion of the sixth year, so that one third may be 
chosen every second year ; and if vacancies hap- 
pen by resignation or otherwise, during the recess 
of the Legislature of any State, the executive 
thereof may make temporary appointments, until 
the next meeting of the Legislature, which shall 
then fill such vacancies. 



Mr. Pinckney's Plan proposed to divide the senators 
into three classes — the house of delegates to " fix their 
time of service by lot." 

Mr. GoRHAM moved to make the senatorial term for " six 
years, one third to go out biennally," which passed in the 
affirmative. 

The committee of detail reported this clause as fol- 
lows : — 

" Immediately after the first election, they shall be 



72 ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTION. 

divided by lot into three classes, as nearly as may be, num- 
bered one, two, and three. The seats of the members of 
the first class shall be vacated at the expiration of the sec- 
ond year, &c." 

" Vacancies may be supplied, by the executive [of the 
State] until the next meeting of the legislature." 

Mr. Wilson objected to this clause. It was unneces- 
sary, and wrong, " that the executive should elect into the 
legislative department." 

Mr. Randolph. — " It will be necessary in order to pre- 
vent inconvenient chasms in the Senate." 

Mr. Ellsworth. — "As there will be but two members 
from a State, vacancies may be of great moment." 
" When the legislative meeting happens to be near, the 
power wiU not be exerted." 

Mr. Williamson moved to add, " unless other provision 
be made by the legislature." Yeas 4, nays 6. 

On motion of Mr. Madison, after " vacancies " the 
words " happening by refusals to accept, resignations, or 
otherwise," were inserted. 



The seat of a Senator is vacated by a resignation ad- 
dressed to the executive of a State, notwithstanding he 
may have received no notice that his resignation has been 
accepted. Bledsoe's case, CI. & HaU, 869. 

It is not competent for the executive of a State, during 
the recess of the legislature to appoint a Senator to fill a 
vacancy which shall happen^ but has not happened at the 
time of the appointment. Lanman's case, CI. & Hall, 871. 

The commission of a Senator by executive appointment 
expires at the close of the next succeeding term of his State 
legislature, when the power of the executive over the va- 
cancy ceases. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 73 



ARTICLE I. 



SECTION III. 



Clause 3. — No person shall be a Senator who shall 
not have attained to the age of thirty years, and 
been nine years a citizen of the United States, 
and who shall not, when elected, be an inhabitant 
of that State for which he shall be chosen. 



The quahfication in respect to age was agreed to with- 
out dissent. 

Mr. Mason moved instructions to the committee of de- 
tail, to consider clauses "requiring certain qualifications 
of landed property and citizenship, for the executive, the 
judiciary, and the members of both branches of the legis- 
lature, &c.," and " disqualifying persons having unsettled 
accounts with the United States." 

Mr. Morris opposed the instructions, particularly the 
last clause, as the delays of the government in liquidating 
the just claims of citiisens, frequently prevented a settle- 
ment. 

On Mr. King's suggestion that there might be great 
danger in requiring a landed property quahfication, the 
word " landed " was stricken out. 

Mr. Dickinson opposed any recital of quahfications. 
The best defence, in his opinion, lay in the freeholders 
who were to elect the legislature. 

7 



74 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

The latter portion of the instructions were refused and 
the first part agreed to. 

The committee of detail reported as follows : — 

" Every member of the Senate shall be of the age of 
thirty years at least ; shall have been a citizen of the 
United States for at least four years before his election ; 
and shall be, at the time of his election, a resident of the 
State for which he shall be chosen." 

Mr. G. Morris moved to strike out " four " and insert 
" fourteen " years of citizenship. 

Mr. C. PiNCKNEY seconded the motion. 

Col. Mason. — " Were it not that many, not natives of 
the country, had acquired great credit during the Revolu- 
tion, he should be for restraining the eligibility into the 
Senate to natives." 

Mr. Madison " thought any restriction in the Constitu- 
tion unnecessary and improper. It would give a tincture 
of illiberality ; it would put it out of the power of the 
national legislature, even by special acts of naturalization, 
to confer the full rank of citizens on meritorious strangers," 
&c. 

Mr. Butler expressed his decided disapprobation to the 
admission of foreigners without a long residence in the 
country. He acknowledged, that if he himself had been 
called into public life within a short time after his coming 
to America, his foreign habits, opinions, and attachments 
would have rendered him an improper agent. 

Mr. Randolph doubted whether the immigration of for- 
eigners was advantageous to the country, but he was not 
willing to disfranchise them for fourteen years. 

Mr. Wilson remarked, that, not being a native, he had 
experienced mortification at the discrimination proposed. 
Notwithstanding his participation in forming the Consti- 
tution, he might be prohibited from serving under it. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 75 

Mr. G. MoREis. — " We should not be polite at the ex- 
pense of prudence. He would let [foreigners] worship at 
the same altar, but did not choose to make priests of them. 
The men who can shake off their attachments to their own 
country can never love any other." 

Mr. Randolph said he would agree to nine years, which 
was inserted. 

Note. — See Gallatin's case, CI. & Hall, 871, and case of Shields, 
United States Senate, March, 1849. 



76 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 



ARTICLE I 



SECTION III. 



Clause 4. — The Vice-President of the United States 
shall be President of the Senate, but shall have 
no vote, unless they be equally divided. 

Clause 5. — The Senate shall choose their other 
officers, and also a President pro tempore in the 
absence of the Vice-President or when he shall 
exercise the office of President of the United 
States. 



The first report of the committee of detail contained 
the following clause in reference to the executive : — 

" In case of his removal as aforesaid, death, resignation, 
or disability to discharge the powers and duties of his 
office, the president of the Senate shall exercise those 
powers and duties until another President of the United 
States be chosen, or until the disability of the President 
be removed." 

Mr. G. Morris and Mr. Madison objected to the desig- 
nation of the president of the Senate as the provisional 
successor to the President in the cases above indicated. 
The former proposed to substitute the chief justice ; 
and the latter suggested that the council to the President 
should execute the executive powers during the occasional 
vacancy. 

Mr. Williamson thought the legislature should be 
empowered to provide for cases of occasional vacancies. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 77 

Mr. Brearly, from the committee of eleven (the 
compromise committee) reported (after providing for his 
election) — " The vice-president shaU be ex officio presi- 
dent of the Senate, except when they sit to try the im- 
peachment of the President, in which case the chief 
justice shall preside, and excepting also, when he shall 
exercise the powers and duties of President ; in which 
case, and in case of his absence, the Senate shall choose 
a president pro tempore. The vice-president when acting 
as president of the Senate, shall not have a vote unless 
the house be equally divided." 

Mr. Gerry, in opposing this clause, remarked that, 
" We might as well put the President himself at the head 
of the legislature. The close intimacy that must subsist 
between the President and the vice-president makes it 
absolutely improper." He was against having any vice- 
president. 

Mr. G. Morris. — " The vice-president, then, will be the 
first heir-apparent that ever loved his father." 

Mr. Sherman. " If the vice-president were not to be 
president of the Senate, he would be without employ- 
ment." 

Mr. Williamson. — " Such an officer as vice-president 
is not wanted. He was introduced merely for the sake 
of a valuable mode of election, whith required two to be 
chosen at the same time." 

The Convention do not appear to have contemplated 
making provision for any such office as vice-president, 
until near the close of their session. But having been 
unable to agree upon any mode of choosing the President, 
the subject was referred to a special committee, of which 
Mr. Williamson was a member, and he probably gives, in 
the above remark, the true reason why such an officer was 
introduced. 

7* 



78 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 



ARTICLE I 



SECTION III. 



Clause 6. — The Senate shall have the sole power to 
try all impeachments : when sitting for that pur- 
pose, they shall be on oath or affirmation. When 
the President of the United States is tried the 
Chief Justice shall preside : and no person shall 
be convicted without the concurrence of two 
thirds of the members present. 

Clause 7. — Judgment in cases of impeachment shall 
not extend farther than to i-emoval from office, 
and disqualification to hold and enjoy any office 
of honor, trust, or profit under the United States: 
but the party convicted shall nevertheless be 
liable and subject to indictment, trial, judgment, 
and punishment according to law. 



Mr. Randolph and Mr. Pinckney proposed to give the 
" national judiciary " jurisdiction in cases of " impeach- 
ments of national officers." 

The plan submitted by Mr. Patterson contained a 
similar provision. 

General Hamilton's Plan, which was only suggested 
in a speech, but never formally submitted to the Conven- 
tion, contained the following : — 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 79 

" The governor, senators, and all other officers of the 
United States, to be liable to impeachment for mal and 
corrupt conduct ; and upon conviction, to be removed 
from office, and disqualified for holding any place of trust 
or profit ; all impeachments to be tried by a court to 

consist of the chief , or judge of the superior comrt 

of law of each State, provided such judge shall hold 
his place during good behavior and have a permanent 
salary." 

Mr. RuTLEDGE, from the committee of detail, reported 
the following: — 

" The jurisdiction of the Supreme Court shall extend 
. . . . to the trial of impeachments of officers of the United 
States. 

" Judgments, in cases of impeachment, shall not extend 
further than to removal from office and disqualification 
to hold and enjoy any office of honor, trust, or profit, under 
the United States. But the party convicted shall, never- 
theless, be liable and subject to indictment, trial, judg- 
ment, and punishment according to law." 

Mr. Gebey moved, that the committee of detail, be 
instructed to report a mode of trying the supreme judges 
in case of impeachment ; and the committee subsequently 
reported the following : — 

" The judges of the Supreme Court shall be triable by 
the Senate, on impeachment by the House of Represent- 
atives." 

The committee of detail, in reference to the executive, 
reported : — 

" He shall be removed from his office on impeachment 
by the House of Representatives, and conviction, in the 
Supreme Court, of treason, bribery, or corruption." 

Mr. G. Morris " thought the tribunal an improper one," 
and the subject was postponed, and referred, under a 



80 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

general motion by Mr. Sherman, " to refer such parts of 
the constitution and reports as had not been finally acted 
on," to a committee of one from each State. The com- 
mittee reported : — 

" He shall be removed from his office on impeachment 
by the House of Representatives, and conviction by the 
Senate, for treason or bribery." 

The same committee also reported : — 

" The Senate of the United States shall have power to 
try all impeachments, but no person shaU be convicted 
without the concurrence of two thirds of the members 
present." 

Mr. Madison "preferred the Supreme Court for the 
trial of impeachment, or rather a tribunal of which the 
Supreme Court should form a part." 

The report of the committee was concurred in. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 81 



AETICLE I. 



SECTION IV. 



Clause 1. — The times, places, and manner of hold- 
ing elections for Senators and Eepresentatives 
shall be prescribed in each State by the Legislature 
thereof; but the Congress may at any time, by 
law, make or alter such regulations, except as to 
the places of choosing Senators. 



This clause first appears in the report of the committee 
on detail, in the following form : — 

" The times and places and manner of holding the elec- 
tions of the members of each House, shall be prescribed 
by the legislatm'e of each State ; but their provisions con- 
cerning them may be altered by the legislature of the 
United States." 

At the suggestion of Mr. Read, the latter part of the 
clause was so modified as to read — " but regulations in 
each of the foregoing cases, may, at any time, be made or 
altered by the legislature of the United States." 

It was then referred to the committee on style, who 
gave it the present form. 



82 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 



ARTICLE I 



SECTION IV. 



Clause 2. — The Congress shall assemble at least 
once in every year, and such meeting shall be on 
the first Monday in December, unless they shall 
by law appoint a different day. 



The Articles of Confederation required Congress to 
meet " on the first Monday in November, in every year." 

Mr. Pinckney's Plan, provided for an annual meeting of 
Congress, and the committee of detail reported : — 

" The legislature shall meet on the first Monday in 
December in every year." 

Mr. G. Morris moved to strike out this clause. He did 
not think it necessary to fix the time of meeting, or to re- 
quire that it should be annual. " The pubhc business 
might not require it." 

Mr. GoRHAM thought an annual meeting necessary, as a 
check on the executive department. 

Mr. King saw no necessity for an annual meeting. " A 
great vice in our system was that of legislating too much." 

Col. Mason thought an annual meeting necessary, for 
exercising the inquisitorial, if not the legislative functions 
of Congress. 

On motion of Mr. Randolph, the words " unless a dif- 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 83 

ferent day shall be appointed by law," were added — and 
on motion of Mr. Rutledgb, the words " once at least in 
each year," were inserted. 

Note. The constitutional term of a Congress, by recent practice, 
does not expire until 12 at noon, of the 4th of March. FormeAiv it wa.i' 
held to expire at midnight preceding. 



84. ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 



ARTICLE I. 



SECTION V. 



Clause 1. — Each house shall be the judge of the 
elections, returns, and qualifications of its own 
members, and a majority of each shall constitute a 
quorum to do business ; but a smaller number may 
adjourn from day to day, and may be authorized 
to compel the attendance of absent members, in 
such manner, and under such penalties, as each 
house may provide. 

Clause 2. — Each house may determine the rules of 
its proceedings, punish its members for disorderly 
behavior, and with the concurrence of two thirds, 
expel a member. 



The committee on detail reported the following : — 

" In each house, a majority of the members shall con- 
stitute a quorum to do business ; but a smaller number 
may adjourn from day to day." 

A motion to allow less than a majority to do business 
having been rejected, on motion of Mr. Randolph and 
Mr. Madison, the words, " and may be authorized to 
compel absent members,"' &c., were added. 

The clause requiring " the concurrence of two thirds " 
to expel a member, was inserted on motion of Mr. 
Madison. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION". 85 

Mr. PiNCKNET submitted the following for reference to 
the committee of detail : — 

" Each house shall be the judge of its own privileges, 
and shall have authority to punish by imprisonment every 
person violating the same, or who, in the place where the 
legislature may be sitting, and during the time of its ses- 
sion, shall threaten any of its members for any thing said 
or done in the house ; or who shall assault any of them 
therefor ; or who shall assault or arrest any witness or 
other person ordered to attend either of the houses, in his 
way going or returning ; or who shall rescue any person 
arrested by their order." 

Messrs. Randolph and Madison doubted the expediency 
or propriety of conferring upon each house the power of 
judging as to the extent of their privileges. It was sug- 
gested, that what constituted privilege, should be ascer- 
tained by law, allowing the houses to judge as to their 
violation. 

No further action appears to have been had on Mr. 
Pinckney's proposition. 



Judicial Constructions. — The returns from the State 
authorities are prima facie evidence only of an election, 
and are not conclusive upon the House. Spaulding v. 
Mead, CI. & HaU, 157 ; Reed v. Cosden, id. 353. 

The refusal of the executive of a State to grant a cer- 
tificate of election, does not prejudice the right of one 
who may be entitled to a seat. Richard's case, id. 95. 

Clause 2. This does not exclude the power to punish 
for contempt, others than members of the House. The 
Constitution says nothing of contempts. These were left 
to the operation of the common-law principle, that every 

8 



86 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

court has the right to protect itself from insult and con- 
tempt, without which right of self-protection they could 
not discharge their high and important duties. Nugent's 
case, 1 Am. L. J. 139 ; Anderson v. Dunn, 6 Wheaton, 
204; Bolton v. Martin, 1 DaU. 296. 

It seems to be settled that a member may be expelled 
for any misdemeanor, though not punishable by any stat- 
ute, which is inconsistent with the trust and duty of a 
member. 1 Story, Const. 838 ; Smith's case, 1 Hall, L. 
J. 459. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 87 



AETICLE I. 

SECTION V. 

Clause 3. — Each house shall keep a journal of its 
proceedings, and from time to time publish the 
same, excepting such parts as may, in their judg- 
ment, require secrecy, and the yeas and nays of 
the members of either house on any question shall, 
at the desire of one fifth of. those present, be 
entered on the journal. 



Articles of Confederation, — " The Congress . . . shall 
publish the journal of their proceedings monthly, except 
such parts thereof relating to treaties, alliances, or military 
operations, as in their judgment require secrecy ; and the 
yeas and nays of the delegates 'shall be entered on the 
journal, when it is desired by any delegate." 

Report of Committee of Detail. — " The House of Rep- 
resentatives and the Senate, when it shall be acting in its 
legislative capacity, shall keep a journal of their proceed- 
ings ; and shall from time to time publish them." 

On motion of Mr. Gerry, the words, "when acting in 
its legislative capacity," were stricken out ; and the words 
" except such parts thereof as may in their judgment 
require secrecy," were added. 



88 ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTION. 

Mr. G. MoRKis and Mr. Randolph proposed, that a 
single member be authorized to call the yeas and nays. 
Disagreed to. 

Mr. Caeroll proposed to confine the call of yeas and 
nays to the House of Representatives, and to allow each 
member of the Senate to enter his dissent. It was ob- 
jected that if a minority were to have the right to enter 
their votes and reasons, the other side would be entitled to 
the same right, and the consequence would be, that the 
journals, like records of courts, would be filled with repli- 
cations and rejoinders. The proposition was rejected. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 89 



ARTICLE I. 



SECTION V. 



Clause 4. — Neither house, during the session of Con- 
gress, shall, without the consent of the other, ad- 
journ for more than three days, nor to any other 
place than that in which the two houses shall be 



sitting. 



Articles of Confederation. — " The Congress of the 
United States shall have power to adjourn to any time 
within the year, and to any place within the United States, 
so that no period of adjournment be for a longer duration 
than the space of six months." 

Mr. Pinckney's Plan. — " Neither house, without the 

consent of the other, shall adjourn for more than days, 

nor to any other place but where they are sitting." 



Report of Committee of Detail. — " Neither house, with- 
out the consent of the other, shall adjourn for more than 
three days, nor to any other place than that at which the 
two houses are sitting. But this regulation shall not 
extend to the Senate," &c. 

Mr. King remarked, that "the section authorized the 
two houses to* adjourn to a new place," to which he ob- 
jected. The changes of the place of meeting of Congress 
had dishonored the government, and should be remedied. 

Mr. Madison expressed the same views. They thought 

8* 



90 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTIOISr. 

a law, at least, should be required, to authorize a change 
of place. 

Mr. Spaight. — " This will fix the seat of government at 
New York. The present Congress will convene them 
there in the first instance, and they will never be able to 
remove, especially if the President should be a northern 
man." 

The clause was then amended by prefixing to it the 
words " During the session of the legislature," — and strik- 
ing out the last line, and then adopted. 



ANALYSIS or THE CONSTITUTION. 91 



ARTICLE I. 

SECTION VI. 

Clause 1. — The Senators and Representatives shall 
receive a compensation for their services, to be 
ascertained by law, and paid out of the Treasury 
of the United States. They shall in all cases, ex- 
cept treason, felony and breach of the peace, be 
privileged from arrest during their attendance at 
the session of their respective Houses, and in go- 
ing to and returning from the same j and for any 
speech or debate in either House, they shall not 
be questioned in any other place. 



Articles of Confederation. — " Each State shall main- 
tain its own delegates." " Freedom of speech and debate 
in Congress shall not be impeached or questioned in any 
court or place out of Congress, and the members of Con- 
gress shall be protected in their persons, from arrests and 
imprisonments, during the time of their going to and re- 
turning from, and attendance on Congress, except for 
treason, felony, or breach of the peace." 

Mr. Randolph's Plan contained the following : — 
" To receive liberal stipends, by which they may be 
compensated for the devotion of their time to the pubUc 
service." 



92 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

On motion of Mr. Madison, the words '•'• and jixed''^ 
were added. He thought, " to leave them to regulate 
their own wages, was an indecent thing, and might in time, 
prove a dangerous one." 

On motion of Dr. Franklin, the word " liberal " was 
stricken out. As first reported from the committee of the 
whole, the clause read, — " To receive fixed stipends^ to 
he paid out of the national treasury. ^^ 

Mr. Ellsworth wished to substitute payment by the 
States. 

Mr. Wilson, was opposed to fixing the amount, as cir- 
cumstances might change. 

Mr. Madison argued that the amount should be fixed 
by the Constitution and paid from the national treasury. 
But he " disliked particularly the policy suggested of leav- 
ing the members from the poor States beyond the mountains 
to the precarious and parsimonious support of their constit- 
uents" He suggested the average price of wheat as a 
standard. 

Mr. Wilson moved, that the compensation " be ascer- 
tained by the national legislature, and be paid out of the 
national treasury." The first branch of the motion was 
lost, — yeas 2, nays 7. The second branch was carried ; 
but on a subsequent vote, the whole sentence was neg- 
atived by an equal division. 

General Pinckney suggested, as the senatorial branch 
was to represent the wealth of the country, " no salary 
should be allowed." 

Dr. Franklin seconded the motion. Disagreed to, — ■ 
yeas 5, nays 6. 

On motion of Mr. Williamson, " fixed stipends " was 
stricken out, and " a compensation for the devotion of 
their time to the public service," substituted. 

Mr. Ellsworth moved to strike out the words, " to be 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 93 

paid out of the national treasury," and insert, " to be paid 
by their respective States." Decided in the negative. 
Yeas — Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, South Car- 
olina, Georgia, 5. Nays — Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, 
Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, 6. 

In this form the clause was sent to the committee on 
detail, who reported it as follows : — ■ 

" The members of each house shall receive a compensa- 
tion for their services, to be ascertained and paid by the 
State in which they shall be chosen." 

Mr. Ellsworth said that reflection had changed his 
mind on this subject, and he moved to substitute pay- 
ment " out of the treasury of the United States, an allow- 
ance not exceeding dollars per day, or the present 

value thereof." 

Mr. Madison said he " could not see any chance for that 
stability in the general government, the want of which 
was a principal evil in the State governments," if the 
members were left dependent on the States for their com- 
pensation. 

Mr. Ellsworth's motion was carried, — yeas 9, nays 2. 



Judicial Constructions. — The exception to freedom from 
arrest, would seem to extend to all indictable offences, as 
well those which are in fact attended with force and vio- 
lence, as those which are only constructive breaches of the 
peace of the government, inasmuch as they violate good 
order. 1 Black. Comm. 166 ; 1 Story, Const. 865. 

They are privileged not only from arrest both on judi- 
cial and mesne process, but also from service of a sum- 
mons or other civil process, while in attendance on their 



94 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

public duties. Geyer's Lessee v. Irwin, 4 Dallas, 107 ; 
Story, Const. 860. See also, 3 Dall. 478. 

A claimant to a seat in Congress, duly commissioned, is 
entitled to the privileges of this section, although ousted 
of his seat. Dunton v. Halstead, 4 Penn. L. J. 237. 



ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTION. 95 



ARTICLE I 



SECTION VI. 



Clause 2. — No senator or representative shall, dur- 
ing the time for which he was elected, be ap- 
pointed to any civil ofiS.ce under the authority of 
the United States, which shall have been created, 
or the emoluments whereof shall have been 
increased during such time : and no person hold- 
ing any office under the United States shall be a 
member of either house during his continuance 
in office. 



Mr. Randolph's Plan, makes members of both branches 
" inehgible to any office established by a particular State, 
or under the authority of the United States," except those 
pertaining to their legislative functions, " during their 

terms of service and for years thereafter," — and the 

members of the first branch incapable of immediate re- 
election and subject to recaU. 

The first blank was fiUed with " one," and the last 
clause stricken out. 

Mr. GoRHAM moved to strike out the ineligibiHty of 
senators to office. 

Mr. King thought such a restriction would discourage 
merit. 

The motion was lost by a tie vote, and Mr. Randolph's 
proposition was agreed to. 



96 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

The committee on detail reported it as follows : — 

" The members of each house shall be ineligible to, and 
incapable of, holding any office under the authority of the 
United States, during the time for which they shaU re- 
spectively be elected ; and members of the Senate ineligi- 
ble to, and incapable of, holding any such office for one 
year afterwards." 

Mr. PiNCKNEY thought this provision degrading and 
inconvenient, and proposed to substitute the following : — 

" The members of each house shall be incapable of 
holding any office under the United States, for which 
they or any others for their benefit, receive any salary, 
fees, or emoluments of any kind ; and the acceptance of 
such office shall vacate their seats respectively." 

This proposition was lost by a tie vote. 

Mr. G. Morris moved to " except officers of the army 
and navy." 

This subject was referred to a select committee, who 
reported the following : — 

" The members of each house shall be ineligible to any 
civil office under the authority of the United States, dur- 
ing the time for which they shall respectively be elected ; 
and no person holding an office under the United States 
shall be a member of either House during his continu- 
ance in office." 

Mr. King moved to insert " created " before " during," 
with the view of excluding the members of the first Con- 
gress, who would create most of the offices. 

Mr. Sherman " was for entirely incapacitating members 
of the legislature. He thought their eligibility to offices 
would give too much influence to the executive. He said 
the incapacity ought, at least, to be extended to cases 
where salaries should be i^icreased as well as created 
during the term of a member." 



AITALYSIS OE THE CONSTITUTION. 97 

Mr. G. MoERiS thought if the executive could not ap- 
point the members, he would appoint their relatives and 
Mends, by which he would secure the votes he desired. 

Mr. King's motion having been rejected by a tie vote, 
Mr. Williamson moved to insert " created or the emolu- 
ments of which shall have been increased " before " dur- 
ing," — which prevailed, and the article in that form was 
agreed to. 



Judicial Constructions. — The acceptance by a member 
of any office under the United States, after he has been 
elected to, and taken his seat in Congress, operates as a 
forfeiture of his seat. Van Ness's case, CI. & Hall, 122. 

Continuing to execute the duties of an office, under the 
United States, after one is elected to Congress, but before 
he takes his seat, is not a disqualification ; such office 
being resigned before taldng his seat. Hammond v. Her- 
rick, CI. & Hall, 287 ; Earle's case, id. 314 ; Mumford's 
case, id. 316. 

9 



98 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 



ARTICLE I. 

SECTION VII. 

Clause 1. — All bills for raising revenue shall origi- 
nate in the House of Representatives; but the 
Senate may propose or concur with amendments 
as on other bills. 



This provision first appears in the report of the com- 
promise committee on the organization of the Senate, as 
an equivalent for allowing the small States an equal vote 
in that body, in the following form : — 

" That all bills for raising or appropriating money and 
for fixing the salaries of the officers of the government of 
the United States, shall originate in the first branch of the 
legislature, and shall not be altered or amended by the 
second branch." 

This part of the report was concurred in, and it was 
sent to the committee on detail, who added the following : 
" No money shall be drawn from the treasury but in 
pursuance of appropriation that shall originate in the 
House of Representatives." 

This modification was rejected in Convention. 

Mr. PiNCKNEY moved to strilte out the provisions re- 
quiring revenue bills to originate in the House of Repre 
sentatives. 

Mr. GoEHAM did not wish to allow the Senate to origi 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 99 

note money bills, but would allow them to make amend- 
ments. 

Mr. Pinckney's motion was carried, but subsequently 
reconsidered, and Mr. Eandolph proposed the following 
substitute : — 

" Bills for raising money for the purpose of revenue, or 
for appropriating the same, shall originate in the House of 
Eepresentatives ; and shall not be so amended or altered 
by the Senate as to increase or diminish the sum to be 
raised, or change the mode of levying it or the object of its 
appropriation." Disagreed to. Yeas 4, nays 7. 

Mr. Strong moved : — 

'' Each house shall possess the right of originating all 
bills, except bills for raising money for the purposes of 
revenue, or for appropriating the same, and for fixing the 
salaries of the officers of government, which shall originate 
in the House of Representatives, but the Senate may pro- 
pose or concur with amendments, as in other cases." 

After debate, the subject was sent to the committee of 
eleven, who reported : " All bills for raising revenue shall 
originate in the House of Representatives, and shall be 
subject to alterations and amendments by the Senate ; no 
money shall be drawn from the treasury, but in conse- 
quence of appropriations made by law." This was finally 
concurred in. 

Mr. Morris said this clause " had been agreed to in the 
committee on the ground of compromise." 

Note. — The compromise appears to have been, that the large States, 
whose influence would predominate in the House of Representatives, 
should exclusively originate revenue bills, as a compensation for giving 
the eventual election of President to the Senate, where the small States 
would have the power. 



too ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUHON. 



ARTICLE I. 



SECTION VII. 



Clause 2. — Every bill which shall have passed the 
House of Representatives and the Senate, shall, 
before it become a law, be presented to the Presi- 
dent of the United States ; if he approve he shall 
sign it ; but if not, he shall return it, with his ob- 
jections, to that house in which it shall have orig- 
inated, who shall enter the objections at large on 
their journal, and proceed to reconsider it. If 
after such reconsideration two thirds of that house 
shall agree to pass the bill, it shall be sent, to- 
gether with the objections, to the other house, by 
which it shall likewise be reconsidered, and if ap- 
proved by two thirds of that house, it shall become 
a law. But in all cases the votes of both houses 
shall be determined by yeas and nays, and the 
names of the persons voting for and against the 
bill shall be entered on the journal of each house 
respectively. If any bill shall not be returned by 
the President within ten days (Sundays excepted) 
after it shall have been presented to him, the same 
shall be a law, in like manner as if he had signed 
it, unless the Congress by their adjournment pre- 
vent its return, in which case it shall not be a 
law. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 101 

Clause 3. — Every order, resolution, or vote, to which 
the concurrence of the Senate and House of Eep- 
resentatives may be necessary (except on a ques- 
tion of adjournment), shall be presented to the 
President of the United States ; and before the 
same shall take effect, shall be approved by him, 
or, being disapproved by him, shall be repassed by 
two thirds of the Senate and House of Represent- 
atives, according to the rules and limitations pre- 
scribed in the case of a bill. 



Mr. Randolph's Plan. — " That the executive and a 
convenient number of the national judiciary ought to 
compose a councU of revision, with authority to examine 
every act of the national legislature before it shall 
operate, and every act of a particular legislature, before a 
negative thereon shall be final; and that the dissent of 
said council shall amount to a rejection, unless the act 
of the national legislature be again passed or that of a 

particular legislature be again rejected, by of the 

members of each branch." 

Mr. Pincxney's Plan contains this revisory power of 
the President, nearly in the words in which they were 
finally embodied in the Constitution. 

Mr. Randolph's resolution being under considera- 
tion, — 

Mr. Geery said he was opposed to joining the judi- 
ciary in the revisory power, — and moved " that the 
national executive shall have a right to negative any 
legislative act which shaU not be afterwards passed by 
[two thirds] of each branch of the national legislature," 
which was adopted. 

9* 



102 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

Mr. Hamilton's Plan gave the executive a negative 
on all laws about to be passed. 

The several propositions having been considered in 
committee of the whole, were reported as follows : — 

" The national executive shall have the right to negative 
any legislative act, which shall not be afterwards passed 
by two thirds of each branch of the legislature : " which was 
concurred in by the convention, without debate, and 
referred to the committee on detail, w^ho gave it the form 
in which it stands in the Constitution. 

Mr. Madison offered a substitute requiring " that every 
bill which shall have passed the two houses, shall, before 
it becomes a law, be severally presented to the President 
of the United States and to the judges of the Supreme 
Court for the revision of each." 

This was supported by Delaware, Maryland, and Vir- 
ginia, and opposed by the other States. 

On motion of Mr. Williamson, " three fourths " was 
substituted for " two thirds." 

Mr. Randolph moved to add the clause in reference 
to " every order, resolution, or vote," &c., which was 
agreed to. 

Mr. Williamson subsequently moved to restore " two 
thirds." 

Mr. Madison. " The object of the revisory power is 
twofold : first, to defend the executive rights ; secondly, 
to defend popular or factious injustice." He was opposed 
to the change. 

The motion prevailed. Yeas 6, nays 4. 

Note. — The Senate have decided [34 to 7] that two thirds of a 
quorum only were requisite to pass a bill over the negative of the 
President, and not two thirds of the whole number of Senators. Senate 
Journal, 7th of July, 1856 ; 9 Law Rep. 196. 

A joint resolution, approved by the President, or duly passed without 
iiis approval, has all the effect of law. 6 Opin. Attorney- General, 680. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 103 



ARTICLE I. 

SECTION VIII. 

Clause 1. — The Congress shall have power to lay 
and collect taxes, duties, imposts and excises, to 
pay the debts and provide for the common defence 
and general welfare of the United States ; but all 
duties, imposts and excises, shall be uniform 
throughout the United States. 



In the Congress of the Confederation, March 6, 1783, 
the committee on revenue reported that " it was indispen- 
sable to the restoration of the pubUc credit," that Con- 
gress should be vested with the power to lay duties on 
imports. 

Mr. Pinckney's Plan. — " The legislature of the United 
States shaU have the power to lay and collect taxes, du- 
ties, imposts, and excises." 

Mr. Patterson's Plan, — proposed by him in behalf of 
the delegates from New Jersey, and others who were in 
favor of amending the Articles of Confederation, but op- 
posed to establishing a Federal Government : — 

That Congress be authorized " to pass acts for raising a 
revenue, by levying a duty or duties on all goods or mer- 
chandises of foreign growth or manufacture, imported into 
any part of the United States ; by stamps on paper, vel- 
]am, or parchment, and by a postage on all letters or pack- 



104 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

ages, passing through the general post-office ; to be ap- 
pHed to such federal purposes as they shall deem proper 
and expedient; to make rules and regulations for the col- 
lection thereof," &c. 

A long and animated debate occurred in committee of 
the whole on these two propositions, involving the ques- 
tion whether it was the pm'pose to establish a Federal 
Government, or merely to revise and amend the Articles of 
Confederation. The committee sustained the idea of a 
Federal Government, and reported the clause as contained 
in Mr. Pinckney's plan. 

Mr. PiNCKNET then suggested the addition of a clause 
" restraining the legislature from establishing a perpetual 
revenue ; " which, with the original proposition, was re- 
ferred to a special committee, and subsequently reported, 
with the addition of the following clause : — 

" For payment of the debts and necessary expenses of 
the United States ; provided, that no law for raising any 
branch of revenue, except what may be specially appro- 
priated for the payment of interest on debts or loans, shall 
continue in force more than years." 

On motion of Mr. Mc Henry, the following clause was 
added. 

" All duties, imposts, and excises, prohibitions or re- 
strictions, laid or made by the legislature of the United 
States, shall be uniform and equal throughout the United 
States." The clause was then referred to the committee 
of eleven, who reported it in the following form : — 

" The legislature shall have power to lay and collect 
taxes, duties, imposts, and excises, to pay the debts, and 
provide for the common defence and general welfare of 
the United States." 

Note. • — The Convention of the State of South Carolina, which 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 105 

adopted and ratified the Constitution, passed the following resolution, 
namely, — 

" Resolved, That the General Government of the United States ought 
never to impose direct taxes, but where the moneys arising from duties, 
imposts, and excise, are insufficient for the public exigencies." 

The States of New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and New York, ex- 
pressed a similar opinion. 



Judicial Constructions. — The power to lay and collect 
taxes, duties, imposts, and excises, is coextensive with 
the territory of the United States. Loughborough v. 
Blake, 5 Wheat. 317. 

Congress is not empowered to tax for those purposes 
which are within the exclusive provision of the States. 
Gibbon v. Ogden, 9 Wheat. 199. 

The States have no power to tax the loans of the 
United States. Weston, v. City of Charleston, 2 Pet. 
449, 465 



106 ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTION. 



ARTICLE I. 

SECTION VIII. 

Clause 2. — To borrow money on the credit of the 
United States. 



Mr. Pinckney's Plan. — " To borrow money and emit 
bills of credit." 

Pteport of Committee of Detail, ■ — " To borrow money 
and emit bills on the credit of the United States." 

The clause " to emit bills on the credit of the United 
States " being under consideration, — 

Mr. G. MoKEis moved to strike it out. 

Mr. Butler seconded the motion. 

Mr. Madison asked if it would not be sufficient to pro- 
hibit the making them a tender ? 

Mr. Mason and Mr. Randolph, notwithstanding their 
antipathy to paper-money, expressed their objections to 
strildng the words out, not being able to foresee what 
emergencies might arise. 

Mr. Mercer " was a friend to paper-money." 

Ml-. Ellsworth, Mr. Wilson, Mr. Butler, and Mr. 
Read strongly advocated the rejection of the words. 
They thought it a favorable moment to " shut the door 
against paper-money." 

Mr. Langdon said he " had rather reject the whole 
plan, than retain the three words, ' and emit bills.'' " 



ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTION. 107 

The motion to strike out was carried, — New Jersey and 
Maryland alone voting against it. 



Judicial Construction. — The States have no power to 
tax the loans of the United States. Weston v. City of 
Charleston, 2 Peters, 449, 465. 



108 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 



ARTICLE I. 

SECTION VIII. 

Clause 3. — To regulate commerce with foreign Na- 
tions, and among the several States, and with 
Indian Tribes. 



This short clause of the Constitution embraces the main 
subject which brought the Convention into existence. The 
navigation laws and commercial restrictions imposed upon 
the colonies by the mother country, had been a constant 
source of irritation for a long time, and contributed largely 
to that state of alienation which led to the Eevolution. 
The resolutions of July 2, 1776, converted the several col- 
onies into " free, sovereign, and independent States." No 
longer subject to the navigation laws of the British Parlia- 
ment, which, with all their evils, brought at least one bless- 
ing, that of uniformity among the colonial ports ; each of 
the new-born States was left in perfect liberty to adopt 
such regulations as appeared conducive to its individual 
interests, regardless of the consequences upon its neighbors. 
Several of the States did not hesitate to avail themselves 
of this new and important prerogative. The States 
through whose ports the natural or artificial channels of 
trade principally passed, were able to exact a revenue from 
those which were less favorably situated for commercial 
purposes. So unwilling were some of the States to yield 



ANALYSIS OF THE COjSTSTITUTIQN. 109 

any portion of their power over this and some other sub- 
jects, that, notwithstanding the pressure of the war, upon 
he success of which their political existence itself was sus- 
lended, no articles of confederation were finally agreed 
ipon and ratified until 1781. Up to this time, the au- 
hority of Congress rested upon an unwritten and unde- 
fined basis — each of the individual States commissioning 
its own delegates and prescribing its powers. And 
the Articles of Confederation, when finally adopted, 
afforded no remedy for the conflicting and often oppressive 
commercial regulations of the States towards each other. 
That instrument conferred upon Congress no power over 
this subject, and it soon became manifest that its absence 
was fatal to successful operation of the system. The pa- 
triotic statesmen of that day immediately set about devis- 
ing a remedy. 

On the 20th of July, 1782, the legislature of New York 
passed a series of resolutions in reference to the state of 
the country, concluding with a resolution, proposing that 
Congress should recommend, and each State adopt the 
measure of assembling a general convention of the States, 
specially authorized to revise and amend the Confedera- 
tion. 

On the 13th July, 1785, Mr. Monroe, from a select com- 
mittee, submitted to Congress a report, in which it was 
recommended that the ninth article of the Confederation 
be so amended as to confer upon Congress the power " of 
regulating the trade of the States, as well with foreign na- 
tions as with each other." 

On the 11th September, 1786, commissioners from the 
States of New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware 
and Virginia, met at Annapolis, under instructions from 
their respective legislatures, " to take into consideration 
the trade and commerce of the United States, and to con- 

10 



110 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

sider how far an uniform system in their commercial in- 
tercourse and regulations might be necessary to their 
common interest and permanent harmony." 

This assembly, after a session of three days, unani- 
mously adopted a report, from which the following are 
extracts : — 

" Deeply impressed, however, with the magnitude and 
importance of the object confided to them on this occa- 
sion, your commissioners cannot forbear to indulge an 
expression of their earnest and unanimous wish, that 
speedy measures may be taken to effect a general meeting 
of the States in a future convention, for the same and such 
other purposes as the situation of public affairs may be 
found to requue." 

" That the idea of extending the powers of their depu- 
ties to other objects than those of commerce, . . . wiU de- 
serve to be incorporated into that of a future convention," 
— as " the power of regulating trade is of such compre 
hensive extent, and will enter so far into the general sys- 
tem of the federal government, that to give it efficacy . . . 
may require a correspondent adjustment of the other parts 
of the fe'deral system." 

The report concludes with the recommendation that all 
the States appoint commissioners, "to meet at Philadel- 
phia on the second Monday in May next, to take into con- 
sideration the situation of the United States, &c." 

In the Federal Convention. Mr. Pinckney's Plan. — 
The legislature of the United States shall have the power : 

" To regulate commerce with aU nations, and among 
the several States." 

" No tax shall be laid on articles exported from the 
States." 

Proposition of Mr. Pattekson, and the delegations from 
New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Delaware — 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. Ill 

That the existing Articles of Confederation be amended 
so as to vest in Congress the power " to pass acts for the 
regulation of trade and commerce, as well with foreign 
nations as with each other." 

Mr. Mason moved, — " Provided that no tax, duty, or 
imposition shall be laid by the legislature of the United 
States on articles exported from any State." 

Mr. RuTLEDGE expressed his willingness to support the 
clause giving Congress power over commerce, on condition 
that the subsequent clause, that " Congress shall pass no 
law prohibiting the immigration or importation of" ne- 
groes, should also be agreed to. 

Mr. PiNCKNEY moved, — " That no act of the legislature 
for the purpose of regulating the commerce of the United 
States with foreign powers or among the several States, 
shall be passed without the assent of two thirds of the 
members of each house." 

This proposition gave rise to a long and exciting debate, 
exhibiting the antagonism between the northern and 
southern States, and indicating the manner in which the 
compromises of the Constitution were brought about. 

Mr. Charles Pinckney. — " The power of regulating 
commerce is a pure concession on the part of the southern 
States. They do not need the protection of the northern 
States at present." 

General C. C. Pinckney. — " It is the true interest of 
the southern States to have no regulation of commerce ; 
but, considering the loss brought on the commerce of the 
eastern States by the revolution, their liberal conduct to- 
wards the views of South Carolina [in reference to the 
importation of slaves], and the interest the weak southern 
States had in being united with the strong eastern States, 
he thought it proper that no fetters should be imposed on 
the power of making commercial regulations, and that his 



112 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

constituents, though prejudiced against the eastern States, 
would be reconciled to this liberality. He had himself 
prejudices against the eastern States before he came here, 
but would acknowledge that he had found them as liberal 
and candid as any men whatever." 

Ml'. Cltmer. — "The northern and middle States will 
be ruined if not enabled to defend themselves against for- 
eign regulations." 

Mr. G. Morris opposed the motion of Mr. Pinckney, 
requiring a two thirds vote to pass navigation laws. " A 
navy," he said, " was essential to security, particularly of 
the southern States, and can only be had by a navigation 
act, encouraging American bottoms and seamen." 

Mr. Williamson favored the motion, although he did 
not deem it necessary ; because, if the northern States 
should make too stringent regulations, the southern States 
would build ships for themselves. 

Mr. Spaight opposed the motion. " The southern States 
could at any time save themselves from, oppression by 
building ships for their own use." 

Mr. Butler regarded the rejection of the motion as a 
concession on the part of the southern States. " He 
considered the interests of these and of the eastern States 
to be as different as the interests of Russia and Turkey." 
But, " being desirous of concihating the affections of the 
eastern States, he should vote against requuing two thirds 
instead of a majority." 

Col. Mason. — " The southern States are the minority 
in both houses. Is it to be expected that they will de- 
liver themselves, bound hand and foot to the eastern 
States ? " 

Mr. Wilson thought it better "to bind the minority 
hand and foot" than the majority. 

Mr. Madison thought the .disadvantage to the South 



ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTION. 113 

from a na\lgation act, would be -chiefly, a temporary rise 
of freight, resulting in an increase of southern as well as 
northern shipping, and in the promotion of the general 
security, and particularly of the southern States. 

Mr. RuTLEDGE w^s against requiring two thirds to pass 
a navigation act. He did not think the abuse of the 
power, if given, to be taken for granted. " At the worst, 
a navigation act could bear Imrd a little while only on the 
southern States." A navigation act was now necessary, 
to secure the West India trade to this country. He advo- 
cated enlarged and permanent views. 

Mr. Randolph. — "A rejection of the motion would 
complete the deformity of the system." 

Mr. Goeham. — " If the government is to be so fettered 
as to be unable to relieve the eastern States, what motive 
can they have to join in it, and thereby tie their own 
hands from measures which they could otherwise take 
for themselves ? The eastern States were not led to 
strengthen the Union by fear for their own safety." 

The proposition, requiring two thirds of each house to 
pass a navigation act was rejected, and the clause 
agreed to. 



Judicial Constructions. — This power, like all others 
vested in Congress, is complete in itself, may be exercised 
to its utmost extent, and acknowledges no limitations, 
other than are prescribed in the Constitution. Gibbons 
V. Ogden, 9 Wheat. 196. 

Commerce with foreign nations and among the several 
States, can mean nothing more than intercourse with 
those nations and among those States, for the purposes of 
trade, be the object of the trade what it may ; and this 
intercourse must include all the means by which it can be 

10* 



114 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

carried on, whether by the free navigation of the waters of 
the several States, or by a passage overland through the 
States, where such passage becomes necessary to commer- 
cial intercourse between the States. Corfiely v. Coryell, 
4 W. C. C. 378 ; Penn. v. Wheehng Br. Co. 18 How. 421 ; 
Col. Ins. Co. V. Peoria Br. Co. 6 McLean, 70. See also, 
id. 209, 237, 518. 

This clause confers the power to impose embargoes, 
Gib. V. Ogden, 9 Wheat. 191 ; and to punish crimes upon 
stranded vessels, United States v. Coombs, 12 Peters, 72. 
It does not, however, interfere with the right of the several 
States to enact inspection, quarantine, and health law"s of 
every description, as well as laws for regulating their 
internal commerce. Gibbon v. Ogden, 9 Wheat. 203 ; 
New York v. Miln, 11 Pet. 102. Nor with the power to 
regulate pilots, Cooley v. Board of Wardens, 12 How. 299. 
Or to protect their fisheries, Smith v. Maryland, 18 
How. 71. 

A State law, which requires the masters of vessels en- 
gaged in foreign commerce, to pay a certain sum to a 
State officer, on account of every passenger brought fi-om 
a foreign country into the State, conflicts with the Consti- 
tution and laws of the United States. Smith v. Turner, 
7 How. 283. 

So does a State law authorizing the seizure and impris- 
onment of free negroes brought into any port of the State, 
on board of any vessel from any other State or foreign 
port. Elkison v. Dehesseline, 2 Wh. Cr. Cas. 5Q. See 1 
Opin. 659, and 2 Opin. 426 contra. And so does a State 
law, which requires an importer to take a license, and pay 
fifty dollars, before he should be permitted to sell a pack- 
age of imported goods. Brown v. Maryland, 12 Wheat. 
419. 

But a State law imposing a tax on brokers, dealing in 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 115 

foreign exchange, is not repugnant to this clause. Nathan 
V. Louisiana, 8 How. 73. 

Nor is one imposing a tax on legacies payable to aliens. 
Magee v. Grimes, id. 490. 

Nor are the license laws of certain States, forbidding 
the sale of spirituous liquors, under less than certain 
large quantities. Thurlow v. Massachusetts, 5 How. 504. 

Congress has power to prevent the obstruction of any 
navigable river, which is a means of commerce between 
any two or more States. Work v. June. R. E.. 5 McLean, 
426. See also, id. 237, and 3 Am. L. R. 79. See also, 
Vezie v. Moor, 14 How. 568, for exceptions. 

Under the power to regulate commerce with the Indian 
tribes, Congress have power to prohibit aU intercourse 
with them, except under license. United States v. Cisna, 
1 McLean, 254. 

In the clause of the Constitution of the United States, 
which declares that " Congress shall have power to regu- 
late commerce," &c., the word commerce comprehends 
" navigation," and a power to regulate navigation is as 
expressly granted, as if that term had been added to the 
word " commerce." 9 Wheaton, 189. 

The power to regulate commerce, extends to every spe- 
cies of commercial intercourse between the United States 
and foreign nations and among the several States. Id. 
191. 

It does not comprehend that commerce which is com- 
pletely internal, which is canied on between man and 
man in a State, or between different parts of the same 
State, and does not extend to or affect other States. But 
it does not stop at the jurisdictional lines of the several 
States ; it must be exercised wherever the subject exists. 
Id. 194-196. 

This power to regulate commerce, is the power to pre- 



116 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

scribe the rules by which commerce is to be governed. 
Like all other powers vested in Congress, it is complete in 
itself, may be exercised to its utmost extent, and has no 
other limitations than such as are prescribed in the Consti- 
tution. Gibbons v. Ogden, 9 Wheat. 196. 

The power to regulate commerce extends as weU to 
vessels employed in carrying passengers, as to those em- 
ployed in transporting property. Id. 215. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTIOIT. 117 



AKTICLE I 



SECTION vin. 



Clause 4. — To establish a uniform rule of naturali- 
zation, and uniform laws on the subject of bank- 
ruptcies throughout the United States ; 



Mr. Pinckney's Plak. — " To establish uniform rules of 
naturalization." 

Mr. PiNCKNEY subsequently moved to add, — 

" To establish uniform laws on the subject of bankrupt- 
cies, and respecting the damages arising on the protest of 
foreign bills of exchange." 

Mr. Sherman " observed that bankruptcies were, in 
some cases, punishable with death by the laws of Eng- 
land, and he did not choose to grant a power by which 
that might be done here." 

Mr. G. MoRKis remarked, " that it was a great and deh- 
cate subject, but he would agree to it because he saw no 
danger of its abuse." 

It was agreed to — Connecticut alone voting in the 
negative. 



Judicial Constructions. — The individual States have a 
constitutional right to pass naturalization laws, provided 
they do not contravene the rule established by the author- 
ity of the Union. 2 DaU. 294; but idem, 371, Quaere? 
See 2 Wheaton, 359. 



118 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

The power to pass naturalization laws would seem to 
be exclusively in Congress. Chirac v. Chirac, 2 Wheat. 
269; United States v. ViUato, 2 DaU. 372; Thurlow v. 
Massachusetts, 5 How. 585; Smith v. Turner, 7 How. 
556. 

The States have authority to pass bankrupt laws, pro- 
vided they do not impair the obligation of contracts, and 
provided there be no act of Congress in force to establish 
a uniform system of bankruptcy, conflicting with such 
laws. Sturges v. Crowninshield, 4 Wheat. 122 ; McMillan 
V. McNiell, id. 209. 

An act of a State legislature, which discharges a debtor 
from all liability for debts contracted previous to his dis- 
charge, on his surrendering his property for the benefit of 
his creditors, is a law impairing the obligation of a con- 
tract, within the meaning of the Constitution of the 
United States. F. & M. Bank v. Smith, 6 Wheat. 131. 

A mere insolvent law is not within the prohibition. 
Ogden V. Saunders, 12 Wheat. 213, 370. 

There is nothing in the Constitution of the United 
States which forbids Congress to pass laws violating the 
obligation of contracts, though such power is denied to 
the States individually. Evans v. Eaton, 1 Peters, C. C. 
E. 322. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 119 



ARTICLE I. 

SECTION vni. 

Clause 5." — To coin money, regulate the value 
thereof, and of foreign coin, and fix the standard 
of weights and measures ; 

Clause 6. — To provide for the punishment of coun- 
terfeitino; the securities and current coin of the 
United States ; 

Clause 7. — To establish post-offices and post-roads ; 

Clause 8. — To promote the progress of science and 
useful arts, by securing, for limited times, to au- 
thors and inventors the exclusive right to their 
respective writings and discoveries; 



These powers were provided for in Mr. Pinckney'S 
Plan, — except " and post-roads," which was added on 
motion of Mr. Gerey. 

Mr. Pinckney proposed to give the power — 

" To establish and provide for a national university at 
the seat of the government of the United States." 

Mr. Madison proposed the following : — 

" To secure to hterary authors their copy-rights for a 
limited time." 

" To estabhsh a university." 

" To encourage, by premiums and provisions, the ad- 
vancement of useful knowledge and discoveries." 



120 ANALYSIS OE THE CONSTITUTION. 

Mr. PiNCKNEY proposed : — 

" To establish seminaries for the promotion of literature 
and the arts and sciences." 

" To secure to authors exclusive rights for a certain 
time." 

These propositions were referred to the committee of 
eleven — but not reported back. 

Mr. Madison and Mr. Pinckney, near the close of the 
session, renewed their proposition as follows : — 

" To establish a university, in which no preferences or 
distinctions should be allowed on account of religion." 

Mr. Morris remarked — " It is not necessary. The 
exclusive power at the seat of government wiU reach the 
object." Yeas 4, nays 6. 

The committee of eleven reported the clause (8) as it 
stands, and it was agreed to nem. con. 



Judicial Constructions. — The power [contained in the 5th 
and 6th clauses] is limited to the coining and stamping the 
standard of value upon what the government creates or 
shaU adopt, and to punishing the offence of producing a 
false representation of what may have been so created 
or adopted. Fox v. Ohio, 5 How. 433, 

Whether Congress have power to provide for the pun- 
ishment of the offence of passing counterfeit coin, has 
been doubted. 2 Law Rep. 90. This power is certainly , 
possessed by the States. Fox v. Ohio, 5 How. 410. 

But Congress may, without doubt, provide for punish- 
ing the offence of bringing into the United States, from a 
foreign place, false, forged, and counterfeit coins, made in 
the similitude of coins of the United States ; and also for 
punishing the offence of uttering and passing the same. 
United States v. Marigold, 9 How. 560. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 121 

Clause 7. — The power to establish post-roads is re- 
stricted to such as are regularly laid out under the laws of 
he several States. C. P. A. R. E. Co. v. F. Canal Co., 
'ittsburg Leg. J. 24 Dec. '53. But see Penn. v. Wh. 
k. Co. 18 How. 421. 

Clause 8. — Patents are entitled to a liberal construc- 
tion, since they are not granted as restrictions upon the 
rights of the community, but " to promote the progress of 
science and the useful arts." Blanchard v. Sprague, 3 
Sumn. 535 ; Grant v. Raymond, 6 Peters, 218 ; Hogg v. 
Emerson, 6 How. 486 ; Brooks v. Fiske, 15 How. 223. 

The power of Congress to legislate upon the subject of 
patents is plenary, by the terms of the Constitution, and 
as there are no restraints on its exercise, there can be no 
limitation of their right to modify them at their pleasure, 
so that they do not take away the rights of property in 
existing patents. McClure v. Kingsland, 1 How. 206. 

Therefore Congress has the right to grant the extension, 
which has been renewed under the act of 1836. Bloomer 
V. StoUey, 5 M'Lean, 158. And to reserve rights and 
privileges to assignees. Blanchard's Gunstock T. Fac. 
V. Warner, 1 Blatch. 258. 

In the United States, an author has no exclusive prop- 
erty in a published work, except under some act of Con- 
gress. Wheaton v. Peters, 8 Pet. 591. 

11 



122 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 



ARTICLE I. 



SECTION VIII. 



Clause 9. — To constitute tribunals inferior to the 
Supreme Court; 

Clause 10. — To define and punish piracies and felo- 
nies committed on the high seas, and offences 
against the law of nations ; 



Clause 9. — The plans of Mr. Randolph and Mr. Pinck- 
NEY both proposed the establishment of inferior courts. 

Mr. RuTLEDGE moved to strike out the provision propos- 
ing that the original jurisdiction should be, in aU cases, in 
the State courts. 

Mr. Madison argued the necessity of inferior courts with 
final jurisdiction in minor cases. " An effective judiciary 
establishment " he regarded as essential. 

Mr. Sherman thought the expense of two new sets of 
courts objectionable. 

Mr. Dickinson advocated a national judiciary to be es- 
tablished by Congress. It was finally determined to leave 
the power with Congress. 

Clause 10. Mr. Pincknet's Plan. — " To declare the 
law and punishment of piracies and felonies at sea." 

Mr. Madison moved to strike out " and punishment." 
Carried. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 123 

Mr. Morris moved to substitute " punish " for " declare 
the law of." Carried. 

Mr. Madison now moved to prefix " define and " 

Mr. Wilson " thought ' felonies ' sufficiently defined by- 
common law." 

Mr. Madison thought otherwise, and the amendment 
was adopted. And on motion of Mr. Ellsworth, " offences 
against the law of nations " was added. 



124 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTIOIT. 



ARTICLE I. 



SECTION VIII. 



Clause 11. — To declare war, grant Letters of Marque 
and Reprisal, and make rules concerning captures 
on land and water; 



Confederation. — Art. 9. " The United States in Con- 
gress assembled shall have the sole and exclusive right and 
power of determining on peace and war, &c. Of estab- 
lishing rules for deciding, in aU cases, what captures on 
land or water shall be legal, &c. Of granting letters of 
marque and reprisal in times of peace," &c. 

Mr. Pinckney's Plan. — "To make rules concerning 
captures from an enemy." 

Committee of detail — " To make war — to make rules 
concerning captures on land or water." 

Mr. PiNCKNEY suggested " that the Senate would be the 
best depository of this power." 

Mr. Butler was for vesting the power in the President. 

Mr. Gerry and Mr. Mason were opposed to vesting the 
power in the President. 

" Declare " was substituted for " make^^ as being more 
restricted in its meaning. 

Mr. PiNCKNEY moved to add, " to grant letters of marque 
and reprisal." 



Judicial Constructions. — As a consequence of the power 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 125 

of declaring war and making treaties, the government pos- 
sesses power of acquiring territory, either by conquest or 
treaty. Am. Ins. Co. v. Canter, 1 Peters, 542. 

When the legislative power has declared war, the execu- 
tive authority, to whom its execution is confided, is bound 
to carry it into effect ; he has a discretion vested in him, 
as to the manner and extent ; but he cannot lawfully 
transcend the rules of warfare established among civilized 
nations. Brown v. United States, 8 Cranch, 153. 

In expounding the Constitution of the United States, a 
construction ought not lightly to be admitted, which would 
give to a declaration of war an effect in this country it 
does not possess elsewhere, and which would fetter that 
exercise of entire discretion respecting enemy's property, 
which may enable the government to apply to the enemy 
the rule that he applies to us. 

The power of making " rules concerning captures on 
land and water " is not confined to captures which are 
extra-territorial, but extends to rules respecting the enemy's 
property found within the temtory, and is an express grant 
to Congress of the power of confiscating enemy's property 
found within the territory at the declaration of war. 
8 Cranch, 110. 

11* 



126 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 



ARTICLE I. 

SECTION vin. 

Clause 12. — To raise and support armies ; but no ap- 
propriation of money to that use shall be for a 
longer term than two years ; 

Clause 13. — To provide and maintain a navy ; 

Clause 14. — To make rules for the government and 
regulation of the land and naval forces ; 



Mr. Pincknet's Plan. — " To raise armies." 

On motion of Mr. Gorham, " and support " was added. 

Mr. Gerry moved to add, " Provided, that in time of 
peace, the army shall not consist of more than thou- 
sand men." He thought that the blank should be filled 
with " two " or " three." Disagreed to. 

Mr. PiNCKNEY. — " The military shaU always be subor- 
dinate to the civil power ; and no grants of money shall 
be made by the legislature, for supporting military land 
forces, for more than one year at a time." 

These propositions were referred to the committee of 
eleven, who reported the clauses as they stand. 



Judicial Constructions. — Congress have a constitutional 
power to enlist minors, in the navy or army, without the 
consent of their parents. U. S. v. Bainbridge, 1 Mas. 71 ; 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 127 

E. Roberts' Case, 2 HaU, L. J. 192 ; U. S. v. Stewart, 
Crabbe, 265 ; Com. v. Barker, 5 Binn. 423. See also, 5 Cr. 
C. C. 554. 

Public policy requires that a minor shall be at liberty to 
enter into a -contract to serve the State, whenever such 
contract is not positively forbidden by the State itself. 
Commonwealth v. Gamble, 11 S. & R. 94. 



128 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 



ARTICLE I. 

SECTION VIII. 

Clause 15. — To provide for calling forth the militia 
to execute the laws of the Union, suppress insur- 
rections, and repel invasions ; 

Clause 16. — To provide for organizing, arming and 
disciplining the militia, and for governing such 
part of them as may be employed in the service 
of the United States, reserving to the States, re- 
spectively, the appointment of the officers, and the 
authority of training the militia according to the 
discipline prescribed by Congress ; 



Articles of Confederation. — " Every State shall always 
keep up a well-regulated and disciplined militia, suffi- 
ciently armed and accoutred, and shall provide and have 
constantly ready for use, in public stores, a due number of 
field-pieces and tents, and a proper quantity of arms, am- 
munition, and camp equipage." 

Mr. Mason moved to give Congress power, — 

" To make laws for the regulation and discipline of the 
militia of the several States, reserving to the States the 
appointment of the officers." 

Mr. Dickinson thought " the States would not and 
ought not to give up all authority over the militia," and 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION'. 129 

suggested " to restrain the power to one fourth at a time." 
This was accepted by Mr. Mason. 

Mr. Gerry expressed his decided opposition to surren- 
dering the power over the militia, to the general govern- 
ment. 

The propositions were sent to the grand committee. 

Gov. Livingston, from the grand committee, reported 
the clause as it stands in the Constitution. 



Judicial Constructions. — The act of 1795, which confers 
power on the President to caU forth the militia in certain 
exigencies, is constitutional ; and the President is the ex- 
clusive and final judge whether the exigency has arisen. 
Martin v. Mott, 12 Wh. 19. 

The militia of the several States are not subject to mar- 
tial law, unless they are in the actual service of the United 
States. Mills v. Martin, 19 Johns. 7. 

So far as Congress has provided for organizing the 
militia, the legislative powers of the States are excluded. 
Houston V. Moore, 5 "Wh. 51. 

But a State may lawfully provide for the trial by courts- 
martial of drafted militia, &c. Moore v, Houston, 3 
S. & R. 169. 



130 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 



ARTICLE I 



SECTION VIII. 



Clause 17. — To exercise exclusive legislation in all 
cases whatsoever, over such district (not exceed- 
ing ten miles square) as may by cession of particu- 
lar States, and the acceptance of Congress, be- 
come the seat of the government of the United 
States, and to exercise like authority over all 
places purchased by the consent of the legislature 
of the State in which the same shall be, for the 
erection of forts, magazines, arsenals, dock-yards, 
and other needful buildings. 



Mr. Madison moved to vest in Congress the power, — - 
" To exercise exclusively, legislative authority at the seat 
of the general government, and over a district around the 

same, not exceeding square miles, the consent of the 

legislature of the State or States comprising the same, 
being first obtained." 

Mr. PiNCKNEY submitted the following : — 

" To fix and permanently establish, the seat of govern- 
ment of the United States, in which they shall possess the 
exclusive right of soil and jurisdiction." 

These propositions were referred to the committee of 
detail, without debate, who subsequently reported the 
clause, substantially as it stands. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 131 

In the discussion on the fourth clause of Art. 1, Sec. 5, 
Mr. King remarked, — " that the mutability of the 
place of the meeting of Congress had dishonored the 
federal government." " He thought a law, at least, should 
be necessary to a removal." 

Mr. Spaight. — " This will fix the seat of government 
at New York." 

Mr. Madison. — "A central place for the seat of govern- 
ment is so just and would be so much insisted on by the 
House of Representatives, that though a law should be 
made requisite for the purpose, it could and would be 
obtained." 

The propositions of Mr. Madison and Mr. Pinckney to 
give to Congress the power to establish a University, 
being under consideration, 

Mr. Morris said — " It is not necessary. The exclusive 
power at the seat of government will reach the object." 



Judicial Constructions. — Congress has authority to 
impose a direct tax on the District of Columbia, in pro- 
portion to the census directed to be taken by the Consti- 
tution. 

The power of Congress to exercise exclusive legislation, 
&«., includes the power of taxing. Lough, v. Blake, 5 
Wheaton, 317. 

Congress is not bound to extend a direct tax to the 
District or the territories. Ibid. 

The right of exclusive legislation carries with it the 
right of exclusive jurisdiction. U. S. v. Council, 2 Mas. 60. 
But the purchase of the lands by the United States, for 
the public purposes within the limits of a State, does not 
of itself, oust the jurisdiction or sovereignty of such State 
over the lands so purchased. Ibid. 



132 ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTION. 

The Constitution prescribes the only mode by which 
they can acquire land as a sovereign power, and therefore, 
they hold only as an individual, when they obtain it in 
any other manner. Commonwealth v. Young, Brightly, 
302; People v. Godfrey, 17 Johns. 225. See also, 2 
Wheat. Cr. Cas. 490, 548 ; 2 WaU, Jr. 72 ; 7 Opin. 628. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 133 



ARTICLE I. 

SECTION VIII. 

Clause 18. — To make all laws which shall be neces- 
sary and proper for carrying into execution the 
foregoing powers, and all other powers vested by 
this Constitution in the Government of the United 
States, or in any department or oflficer thereof. 



General Powers of Congress. 

Articles of Confederation. — " The United States in 
Congress assembled, shall have the sole and exclusive right 
and power of determining on peace and war ..... of 
sending and receiving ambassadors ; entering into treaties 
and alliances, provided that no treaty of commerce shaU 
be made, whereby the legislative power of the respective 
States shaU be restrained from imposing such imposts and 
duties on foreigners as their own people are subjected to 
or from prohibiting the exportation or importation of any 
species of goods or commodities whatsoever ; of establish- 
ing rules for deciding, in aU cases, what captures on land 

or water shall be legal of granting letters of 

marque and reprisal in times of peace ; appointing courts 
for the trial of piracies and felonies committed on the high 
seas, and establishing courts for receiving and determining 
finally appeals in aU. cases of captures, provided that no 
member of Congress shall be appointed a judge of any of 
said courts. 

12 



134 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

" The United States in Congress shall also have the rfole 
and exclusive right and power of regulating the alloy and 
value of coin struck by their own authority or that of the 
respective States ; fixing the standard of weights and 
measures throughout the United States ; regulating the 
trade and managing all affairs with the Indians, not mem- 
bers of any of the States, provided that the legislative 
right of any State be not infringed or violated ; establish- 
ing or regulating post-offices from one State to another, 
throughout all the United States, and exacting such post- 
age on the papers passing through the same as may be 
requisite to pay the expenses of the said office ; appoint- 
ing all officers," &c. 

Mr. Randolph's Plan. — "jEacA branch ought to possess 
the right of originating acts. The national legislature 
ought to be empoivered to enjoy the legislatioe rights vested 
in Congress by the Confederation, and moreover to legislate 
in all cases to which the separate States are incompetent, or 
in ivhich the harmony of the United States may be inter" 
rupted by the exercise of individual legislation ; to negative 
all laws passed by the several States, contravening, in the 
opinion of the national legislature, the articles of union, or 
any treaty subsisting under the authority of the Union, 
and to call forth the force of the Union against any mem- 
ber of the Union failing to fulfil its duty under the articles 
thereof." Agreed to in committee of the whole, without 
division, except the last clause. 

When the clause giving Congress power to negative 
State laws came up in the Convention, Mr. Pinckney of 
South Carolina, moved the following substitute : " That 
the national legislature should have authority to negative 
all laws [of State legislatures] which they should judge 
to be improper." 

Mr. Madison " could not but regard an indefinite power 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 13o 

to negative legislative acts of the States as absolutely- 
necessary to a perfect system." 

On the question of agreeing to the proposition, — yeas, 
Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Virginia, 3. Delaware 
divided. AU the rest nay. 

Note. — As the plan of govei'nment became more developed, Mr. 
Madison changed his opinion on this subject. 

Plan proposed by the delegates from New Jersey. 

" Sec. — . That, in addition to the powers vested in the 
United States in Congress, by the present existing Articles 
of Confederation, they be authorized to pass acts for rais- 
ing a revenue, by levying a duty or duties on all goods or 
merchandises of foreign growth or manufacture, imported 
into any port of the United States ; by stamp on paper, 
veUum or parchment, and by a postage on all letters or 
packages passing through the general post-office ; — to 
be applied to such federal purposes as they shall deem 
proper and expedient ; to make rules and regulations for 
the collection thereof; and the same from time to time to 
alter and amend in such manner as they shall think 
proper ; to pass acts for the regulation of trade and com- • 
merce, as well with foreign nations as with each other; 
— provided that all punishments, fines, forfeitures, and 
penalties, to be incurred for contravening such acts, rules, 
and regulations, shall be adjudged by the common-law 
judiciaries of the State in w hich any offence, contrary to 
the true intent and meaning of such acts, rules, and regu- 
lations, shall have been committed and perpetrated, with 
liberty of commencing in the first instance all suits and 
prosecutions for that purpose in the superior common-law 
judiciary in such States ; subject, nevertheless, for the cor- 
rection of all errors, both in law and fact, in rendering 



136 ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTION. 

judgment, to an appeal to the judiciary of the United 

States. 

" Sec. — . That whenever requisitions shall be neces- 
sary, instead of the rule for making requisitions, men- 
tioned in the Articles of Confederation, the United States 
in Congress be authorized to make such requisitions in 
proportion to the whole number of white and other free 
citizens and inhabitants of every age, sex, and condition, 
including those bound to service for a term of years, and 
three jfifths of all other persons, not comprehended in the 
foregoing description, except Indians not paying taxes; that 
if such requisitions be not complied with in the time speci- 
fied therein, to direct the collection thereof in the non- 
complying States, and for that purpose to devise and pass 
acts directing and authorizing the same ; — provided that 
none of the powers hereby vested in the United States in 
Congress shall be exercised without the consent of at least 
States, and in that proportion, if the number of con- 
federated States should be hereafter increased or dimin- 
ished. 

" Sec — . That the United States in Congress be au- 
thorized to elect a federal executive." [This plan was sus- 
tained by New York and New Jersey only.] 

Mr. Randolph remarked, in comparing this plan with 
that submitted by him, — " The true question is, whether 
we will adhere to the federal plan or introduce the national 
one." 

Mr. Hamilton's Plan, — suggested in his speech on 
Mr. Randolph's resolutions. " The supreme legislative 
power of the United States of America to be vested in 
two different bodies of men ; — the one to be called the 
Assembly, the other the Senate, who together shall form 
the legislature of the United States, with power to pass 
aU laws whatsoever, subject to the negative hereafter men- 
tioned. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 137 

" All laws of the particular States, contrary to the Con- 
stitntion and laws of the United States to be utterly void ; 
and the better to prevent such laws being passed, the gov- 
ernor or president of each State shall be appointed by the 
general government and shall have a negative upon the 
laws about to be passed in the State of which he is gov- 
ernor or president." 

These several propositions having been considered 
in the committee of the whole, they reported the follow- 
ing:— 

" That the national legislature ought to be empowered 
to enjoy the legislative rights vested in Congress by the 
Confederation ; and, moreover, to legislate in all cases to 
which the separate States are incompetent, or in which 
the harmony of the United States may be interrupted by 
the exercise of individual legislation ; to negative all laws 
passed by the several States, contravening, in the opinion 
of the national legislature, the articles of union or any 
treaties subsisting under the authority of the Union." 

This was modified on motion of Mr. Bedford, by 
inserting " for the general interests of the Union and also 
in those " — after the words " all cases." 

The power to negative State laws was rejected in Con- 
vention ■ — being supported by Massachusetts, Virginia, 
and North Carolina only. 

As thus amended, the report was agreed to, and referred 
to the committee on detail, in the following form : — 

" The legislature of the United States shall have au- 
thority to establish such uniform qualifications of the 
members of each house, with regard to property, as to the 
said legislature shall seem expedient. 

" The legislature of the United States shall have the 
power to lay and collect taxes, duties, imoosts, and 
excises. 

12* 



138 ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTION. 

" To regulate commerce with foreign nations and among 
the several States ; 

" To establish an uniform rule of naturalization through- 
out the United States ; 

" To coin money ; To regulate the value of foreign 
coin; 

" To fix the standard of weights and measures ; 

" To establish post-offices ; [on motion of Mr. Gerry, 
" and post roads " was added] . 

" To borrow money and emit bills on the credit of the 
United States ; 

" To appoint a treasurer by ballot ; 

" To constitute tribunals inferior to the Supreme Court ; 

" To make rules concerning captures on land and water ; 

" To declare the law and punishment of piracies and 
felonies committed on the high seas, and the punishment 
of counterfeiting the coin of the United States, and of 
offences against the law of nations ; 

"To subdue a rebellion in any State on the application 
of its legislature ; 

" To make war ; to raise armies ; to build and equip 
fleets ; 

" To caU. forth the aid of the militia in order to execute 
the laws of the Union, enforce treaties, suppress insurrec- 
tions, and fepel invasions ; 

'^ And to make all laws that shall be necessary and 
proper for carrying into execution the foregoing powers, 
and all other powers vested by this Constitution in the 
government of the United States, or in any department or 
office thereof." 

[To declare the punishment of treason.] 

Mr. Madison moved to add the following : — 

" To dispose of the unappropriated lands of the United 
States. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 139 

" To institute temporary governments for new States 
arising therein. 

" To grant charters of corporation in cases where the 
public good may require them, and the authority of a sin- 
gle State may be incompetent. 

" To secure to literary authors their copyrights for a 
limited time. 

" To establish a university. 

" To encourage, by premiums and provisions, the ad- 
vancement of useful knowledge and discoveries. 

" To authorize the executive to procure and hold, for 
the use of the United States, landed property for the 
erection of forts, magazines, and other necessary build- 
ing." 

Mr. PiNCKNET, at the same time, moved the follow- 
ing:— 

" To fix and permanently establish, the seat of govern- 
ment, &c. 

" To establish seminaries for the promotion of litera- 
ture, &c. 

" To grant charters of incorporation. 

" To grant patents for useful inventions. 

" To secure to authors exclusive rights for a certain, 
time. 

" To establish public institutions, rewards, and immuni- 
ties for the promotion of agTioulture, commerce, trades, 
and manufactures." 

These propositions were sent to the committee of detail, 
without debate. 

Mr. Mason moved to add " a power to regulate the 
militia " — and a power " to enact sumptuary lawsJ^ 

Mr. Ellsworth, Mr. G. Morris, and Mr. Gerry op- 
posed the latter power. The vote stood — yea, Dela- 
ware, Maryland, and Georgia ; all the rest nay. 



140 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

Mr. RuTLEDGE reported from the committee to whom 
the above propositions were referred as follows — add 
to the clause giving the power to lay and collect taxes, 
duties, imposts, and excises — " for payment of the debts 
and necessary expenses of the United States; provided, 
that no law for raising any branch of revenue, except 
what may be specially appropriated for the payment of 
interest on debts or loans, shall continue in force more 
than years." 

Mr. Charles Pinckney renewed the proposition to give 
the legislature of the United States the power, 

" To negative all laws passed by the several States, 
interfering, in the opinion of the legislature, with the 
general interests and harmony of the Union, provided 
that two thirds of the members of each house assent to 
the same." 

Mr. Brown, Mr. Madison, Mr. Langdon, and Mr. 
Wilson, favored the proposition. Mr. Wilson regarded 
it as "the keystone wanted to complete the arch of 
government we are raising." 

Mr. Sherman, Mr. Williamson, Mr. Rutledge, Mr. 
Ellsworth, and Mr. G. Morris, opposed it. Mr. Rut- 
»ledge remarked, " This alone would damn and ought to 
damn the Constitution." 

On the question of referring the proposition to a com- 
mittee, moved by Mr. Madison, it was lost by the votes 
of New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, 
and Virginia, in the affirmative ; and Massachusetts, 
.Connecticut, New Jersey, North Carolina, South Carolina, 
and Georgia, in the negative. It was then withdrawn, 
that being regarded as a test vote. 

Mr. Gerry and Mr. Pinckney moved to insert — " that 
the liberty of the press should be inviolably preserved." 
Lost — yeas 4, nays 7. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 141 

The subject was then sent to the committee on style 
and arrangement, who reported the form as in the Consti- 
tution. 



Judicial Constructions. — The word necessary, in this 
clausfe, does not mean absolutely necessary, nor does it 
imply the use of only the most direct and simple means 
calculated to produce the end. Commonwealth v. Lewis, 
6 Binn. 270 ; McCuUoch v. Maryland, 4 Wheaton, 413. 

And, therefore, Congress had the power to charter the 
Bank of the United States, as a necessary and useful 
instrument of the fiscal operations of the government. 
Ibid. 316, 422. 

They have the power, under this general authority, to 
provide for the punishment of any offences which interfere 
with, obstruct, or prevent commerce and navigation with 
foreign States and among the several States, although 
such offences may be done on land. U. S. v. Coombs, 
12 Peters, 78. 

If the end be legitimate and within the scope of the 
Constitution, all the means which are appropriate, which 
are plainly adapted to that end, and which are not pro- 
hibited, may constitutionally be employed to carry it into 
effect. 4 Wheaton, 316. 

Corporations. The power of estabKshing corporations 
is not a distinct sovereign power or end gf government, 
but only the means of carrying into effect other powers 
which are sovereign. Whenever it becomes an appro- 
priate means of exercising any of the powers given by the 
Constitution, to the government of the Union, it may be 
exercised by that government. Ibid. 



142 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 



ARTICLE I. 

SECTION IX. 

Clause 1. — The migration or importation of such 
persons as any of the States now existing shall 
think proper to admit, shall not be prohibited by 
the Congress prior to the year one thousand eight 
hundred and eight; but a tax or duty may be 
imposed on such importation, not exceeding ten 
dollars for each person. 



A clause of this kind was suggested by the members 
from South Carolina, during the debate on the navigation 
clause, but no formal proposition movt?d. 

The committee to whom the subject of the general 
powers of Congress was referred, reported the follow- 
ing : — 

" No tax or duty shaU be laid, &c., on the migration or 
importation of such persons as the several States shall 
think proper to admit ; nor shall such migration or impor- 
tation be prohibited." 

Mr. L. Martin, of Maryland, proposed to amend the 
clause so as to allow a tax or prohibition on the impor- 
tation of slaves, — for the reasons that their importation 
was encouraged by their being made an element in the 
basis of representation, at the same time that they weak- 



AISTALTSIS OF THE C0:N"STITUTI0N. 143 

ened the power of the State, — and because it was in- 
consistent with the principles of the Revolution. 

Mr. RuTLEDGE did not concede that slaves were an 
element of weakness in a State, and " would readily 
exempt other States from the obligation to protect the 
southern against them." " The true question at present 
is, whether the southern States shall or shall not be 
parties to the Union." 

Mr. PiNCKNET said — " South Carolina can never receive 
the plan if it prohibits the slave-trade." 

Mr. Ellsworth. — " Let every State import what it 
pleases. The morality or wisdom of slavery are consid- 
erations belonging to the States themselves. What 
enriches a part enriches the whole, and the States are the 
best judges of their particular interest." 

Mr. Shermait " was for leaving the clause as it 
stands." " He disapproved of the slave-trade, but did 
not think the public good required that the proposed 
scheme of government should interfere with the existing 
rights of the States to import slaves." " It was better to 
let the southern States import slaves than to part with 
them, if they made that a sine qua nonP 

Colonel Mason, of Virginia. — " The infernal traffic 
originated in the avarice of British merchants. The 
British government constantly checked the attempts of 
Virginia to put a stop to it." " He held it essential, in 
every point of view, that the general government should 
have the power to prevent the increase of slavery." 

General Pinckney. — " South Carolina and Georgia 
cannot do without slaves. As to Virginia, she will gain 
by stopping importations. Her slaves will rise in value, 
and she has more than she wants." " The importation of 
slaves will be for the interest of the whole Union." 

Mr. Gerry. — " We have nothing to do with the con- 



144 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

duct of the States as to slaves, but ought to be careful 
not to give any sanction to it." 

Mr. King of Massachusetts, and Mr. Langdon of New 
Hampshire, strongly advocated, giving the prohibitory 
power to the general government. Mr. Langdon said he 
"could not, with a good conscience, leave it with the 
States." 

General Pinckney, of South Carolina, moved to re- 
commit the clause, " that slaves might be made liable to 
an equal tax with other imports." 

Mr. RuTLEDGE, of South Carolina. — " If the Convention 
thinks that North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia 
win ever agree to the plan, unless their right to import 
slaves be untouched, the expectation is vain." 

Mr. G. Morris, of Pennsylvania, proposed also to re- 
commit the clauses relating to taxes on exports, and to a 
navigation act — " with the view to a bargain between the 
northern and southern States" 

Mr. Randolph favored the commitment, in the hope 
that a compromise might be eifected ; but he " could never 
agree to the clause as it stands ; he would sooner risk the 
Constitution." 

The motion to commit was carried by the votes of Con- 
necticut, New Jersey, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, 
South Carohna, and Georgia. 

The committee, consisting of Langdon of New Hamp- 
shire, King of Massachusetts, Johnson of Connecticut, 
Livingston of New York, Clymer of Pennsylvania, Dick- 
inson of Delaware, L. Martin of Maryland, Madison of 
Virginia, Williamson of North Carolina, C. C. Pinckney 
of South Carolina, and Baldwin of Georgia, reported the 
following, as a substitute for the propositions referred to 
them : — 

" The immigration or importation of such persons as the 



ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTION. 145 

several States, now existing, shall think proper to admit, 
shaU not be prohibited by the legislature prior to the year 
1800, but a tax or duty may be imposed on such migra- 
tion or importation, at a rate not exceeding the average 
of the duties laid on imports." 

The clause in relation to the capitation tax to be re- 
tained, and that requiring a two thirds vote to pass a nav- 
igation act, to be stricken out. 

The report being taken up, 

General Pinckney moved to strike out " 1800 " and in- 
sert « 1808." 

Mr. GoRHAM seconded the motion, and it prevailed. 

Affirmative — New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connec- 
ticut, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, and 
Georgia, 7. 

Negative — New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and 
Virginia, 4. 

Mr. G. MoREiS proposed to avoid ambiguity by making 
the clause read, " The importation of slaves into North 
Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia, shall not be pro- 
hibited." " He wished it to be known that this part of the 
Constitution was a compliance with those States. K the 
change of language should be objected to by members 
from those States, he should not urge it." 

Mr. Williamson said, " that both in opinion and prac- 
tice he was against slavery ; but he thought it more favor- 
able to humanity, from a view of aU the circumstances, to 
let in South Carolina and Georgia on those terms, than to 
exclude them from the Union." 

Mr. Morris vidthdrew his motion. 

Mr. Sherman was opposed to authorizing a "tax or 
duty " on such " immigration " or " importation," as imply- 
ing that " men could be property." 

It was answered, that this was the price of the other 
13 



146 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

» 
part of the clause, and that not to tax would be equiva- 
lent to a bounty on the importation of slaves. 

Mr. Madison " thought it wrong to admit, in the Con- 
stitution, that there could be property in men." It was 
finally arranged to read, as in the Constitution. [See de- 
bate on the navigation clause.] 



ANALYSIS OE THE CONSTITUTION. 147 



ARTICLE I. 



SECTION IX. 



Clause 2. — The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus 
shall not be suspended, unless when in cases of 
rebellion or invasion the public safety may re- 
quire it. 



Mr. PiNCKNEY submitted for reference to committee of 
detail, the following : — 

" The privilege and benefit of the writ of habeas corpus 
shaU be enjoyed in this government in the most expeditious 
and ample manner, and shall not be suspended by the 
legislature except upon the most urgent and pressing occa- 
sions, and for a Hmited time, not exceeding months." 

Mr. RuTLEDGE thought the privilege of habeas corpus 
should be declared inviolate. 

Mr. G. Morris suggested the form as it stands in the 
Constitution, and it was adopted. 



148 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 



ARTICLE I. 



SECTION IX. 



Clause 3. — No bill of attainder or ex post facto law 
shall be passed. 

Clause 4. — No capitation, or other direct tax, shall 
be laid, unless in proportion to the census or enu- 
meration herein before directed to be taken. 



Clause 3 was moved by Mr. Gerey. 

Clause 4 was part of the compromise between the north- 
ern and southern States, as to the proportion of taxation, 
representation, navigation, and importation of slaves. 

Mr. Baldwin, of Georgia, in the House of Representa- 
tives (2d Sess., 1st. Cong.), said : " This was intended to 
prevent Congress from laying any special tax upon negro 
slaves." 



Judicial Constructions. — Ex post facto laws are such as 
create or aggravate crimes or increase the punishment, or 
change the rules of evidence for the purpose of conviction. 
Calder v. Bull, 3 DaU. 390. The phrase only applies to 
penal and criminal laws, which inflict forfeitures or pun- 
ishments, and not to civil proceedings which affect private 
rights retrospectively. Watson v. Mercer, 8 Peters, 110 ; 
Carpenter v. Penn, 17 How. 463. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 149 



ARTICLE I. 



SECTION IX. 



Clause 5. — No tax or duty shall be laid on articles 
exported from any State. 

Mr. Pinckney's Plan. — " No tax shaU be laid on articles 
exported from the States." 

Mr. Mason " urged the necessity of connecting with the 
powers of levying taxes, duties," &c. the above prohibi- 
tion. " He hoped the northern States did not mean to 
deny the southern this security." 

Mr. G. Morris regarded such a prohibition as inadmis- 
sible. 

Mr. Madison " thought the power proper in itself, and 
that its exercise belonged to the States collectively and 
not individually. He argued that the tax would be paid 
by the consumer and not by the producer, and that, even 
if the burden should fall heaviest on the southern States, 
they ought not to complain, because they were more in 
need of naval protection than the northern." 

Messrs. Williamson, Ellsworth, Gerry, Mercer, and 
Sherman supported the prohibition, and Messrs. Wilson 
and G. Morris opposed it. 

Mr. Madison moved to amend by adding, " unless by 
consent of two thirds of the legislature." Lost Yeas 5, 
nays 6. 

Mr. Morris proposed that the clauses relating to the 
importation of slaves, the navigation laws, and the tax on 

13* 



150 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

exports, be referred to a special committee, and suggested 
that they might be the subjects " of a bargain between the 
northern and southern States." 

Mr. Butler " declared he never would agree to the 
power of taxing exports." 

Mr. Morris's motion prevailed. Yeas — Connecticut, 
New Jersey, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South 
Carolina, Georgia, 7. Nays — New Hampshire, Pennsyl- 
vania, and Delaware, 3. 

The committee subsequently reported the several clauses 
on the subjects referred to them, substantially as finally 
adopted. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTIOlsr. 151 



ARTICLE I. 



SECTION IX. 



Clause 6. — No preference shall be given by any reg- 
ulation of commerce or revenue to the ports of 
one State over those of another ; nor shall vessels 
bound to or from one State, be obliged to enter, 
clear, or pay duties in another. 

Clause 7. — No money shall be drawn from the Treas- 
ury, but in consequence of appropriations made 
by law ; and a regular statement and account of 
the receipts and expenditures of all public money 
shall be published from time to time. 



Mr. Caeroll and Mr. Martin suggested the sixth clause 
in order to prevent the general legislature from favoring 
the ports of particular States. This proposition was re- 
ferred to a committee, who reported in its favor, and the 
report was concurred in. 

The seventh clause grew out of the compromise which 
conceded the equality of the States in the Senate. As 
first agreed to, it was in the following form : — 

" No money shall be drawn from the treasury but in 
pm-suance of appropriations that shall originate in the 
House of Representatives." 

The committee of style and arrangement gave it its 



152 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

present form. The requirement of a publication of the 
public expenditures, was moved by Col. Mason. 



Judicial Construction. — A State law requiring the pay- 
ment of pilotage fees, does not infringe this clause. 
Cooley V. Board of Wardens, 12 How. 314, 315. See 18 
How. 421. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 153 



ARTICLE I. 



SECTION IX. 



Clause 8. — No title of nobility shall be granted by 
the United States: and no person holding any 
office of profit or trust under them, shall, without 
the consent of the Congress, accept of any present, 
emolument, office, or title, of any kind whatever, 
from any king, prince, or foreign State. 



Articles of Confederation. — " Nor shall any person 
holding any office of profit or trust under the United States, 
or any of them, accept of any present, emolument, office, 
or title of any kind whatever, from any king, prince, or for- 
eign State. Nor shall the United States in Congress as- 
sembled or any of them, grant any title of nobihty." 

These prohibitions were transferred to the Constitution, 
on motion of Mr. C. Pincknet, without opposition. 



154 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 



ARTICLE I. 



SECTION X. 



Clause 1. — No State shall enter into any treaty, al- 
liance, or confederation ; grant letters of marque 
and reprisal ; coin money ; emit bills of credit ; 
make any thing but gold and silver coin a ten- 
der in payment of debts ; pass any bill of attain- 
der, ex post facto law, or law impairing the obli- 
gation of contracts, or grant any title of nobility. 



Articles of Confederation. — No State, without the con- 
sent of the United States in Congress assembled, shall 
send any embassy to, or receive any embassy from, or en- 
ter into any conference, agreement, alliance, or treaty with 

any king, prince, or State or grant any title of 

nobility. 

The committee of detail transferred the above article to 
the Constitution in the following form : — 

" No State shall coin money ; nor grant letters of marque 
and reprisal ; nor enter into any treaty, alliance, or con- 
federation, nor grant any title of nobility. No State, 
without the consent of the legislature of the United States, 
shall emit bills of credit, or make any thing but specie, a 
tender for the payment of debts . . . nor enter into any 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 155 

agreement or compact with another State or with any for- 
eign power." 

Mr. Wilson and Mr. Sherman proposed to make the 
prohibition on the States, " to emit bills of credit," or 
" make any thing but gold and silver coin a tender in pay- 
ment of debts," peremptory, instead of allowing the States 
to exercise the power, by obtaining the consent of Con- 
gress. 

Mr. Sherman argued with great earnestness that this 
was a favorable crisis " for crushing paper-money." The 
motion was carried — Virginia alone voting in the nega- 
tive. 

On motion of Mr. Rutledge, — " nor pass bills of at- 
tainder nor ex post facto laws," was added. 



Judicial Constructions. — To constitute a bill of credit, 
within the Constitution, it must be issued by a State, in- 
volve the faith of the State, and be designed to circulate 
as money, on the credit of the State, in the ordinary use 
of business. Briscoe v. Bk. Ky. 11 Peters, 257. See also, 
4 Pet. 410 ; 8 Pet. 40 ; 10 How. 205 ; 13 How. 12 ; 15 
How. 317. 

The Constitution does 3Qot prohibit the States from 
passing retrospective laws generally, but only ex post facto 
laws. Watson v. Mercer, 8 Pet. 110. See also, Balti- 
more & Susquehanna Railroad v. Nesbit, 10 How. 401. 

The provision relative to impairing the obligation of con- 
tracts has never been understood to embrace other con- 
tracts than those which respect property, or some object 
of value, and confer rights which may be asserted in a 
court of justice. A private charter is such a contract. 
Dart. CoU. v. Woodward, 4 Wheat. 518, 629. 



156 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

An act incorporating a bank. Providence Bank v. Bil- 
lings, 4 Pet. 514. An appointment to a salaried officer is 
not such a contract. Butler v. Pennsylvania, 10 How. 
402. All contracts are subject to the eminent domain ex- 
isting in the several States. W. R. Br. Co. v. Dix, 6 
How. 507. See also, 12 Wheat. 370 ; 1 How. 316. Any 
postponement or acceleration of the performance of the 
contract impairs its obligation. Green v. Biddle, 8 
Wheat. 175 ; McCracken v. Hayward, 2 How. 608. 



NALTSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 157 



ARTICLE I. 



SECTION X. 



Clause 2. - — No State shall, without the consent of 
the Congress, lay any imposts or duties on im- 
ports or exports, except what may be absolutely 
necessary for executing its inspection laws : and 
the net produce of all duties and imposts, laid 
by any State on imports or exports, shall be for 
the use of the Treasury of the United States ; and 
all such laws shall be subject to the revision and 
control of the Congress. 



Articles of Confederation. — " No State shall lay any 
imposts or duties, which may interfere with any stipula- 
tions in treaties." 

The committee of detaU, transferred this article, in the 
following form : — 

" No State, without the consent of the legislature of the 
United States, shall . . . lay imposts or duties on im- 
ports." 

On motion of Mr. King, " or exports " was added ; and 
on motion of Mr. Sherman, " nor with such consent, but 
for the use of the United States." 

On motion of Col. Mason, the following was added : — 

" Provided that no State shall be restrained from im- 
posing the usual duties on produce exported from such 

14 



158 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

State, for the sole purpose of defraying the charges of in- 
specting, packing, storing, and indemnifying the losses on 
such produce while in the custody of public officers ; but 
aU such regulations shaU, in case of abuse, be subject to 
the revision and control of Congress." 

The committee of style and revision gave it the form in 
which it stands. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 159 



ARTICLE I. 



SECTION X. 



Clause 3. — No State shall, without the consent of 
Congress^, lay any duty of tonnage, keep troops, or 
ships of war in time of peace, enter into any 
agreement or compact with another State, or with 
a foreign power, or engage in war, unless actually 
invaded, or in such imminent danger as will not 
admit of delay. 



Articles of Confederation. — " No two or more States 
shall enter into any treaty, confederation, or alHance be- 
tween them, without the consent of the United States in 
Congress assembled, specifying accurately the purpose for 
which the same is to be entered into, and how long it 
shall continue. No State shall lay any imposts or duties 
which may interfere with any stipulations in treaties," 
&c. 

" No vessels of war shall be kept up in time of peace 
by any State, except such number only, as shaU be deemed 
necessary by the United States in Congress assembled, 
for the defence of such State or its trade — nor shall any 
body of forces be kept up by any State, in time of peace 
— except," &c. 

" No State shall engage in war without the consent 
&c., unless such State be actually invaded by enemies," 
&c. 



160 ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTION. 

The committee of detail transferred these powers to the 
new Constitution, nearly as they stand. 



Judicial Constructions. — The words in this clause are 
used in their broadest sense ; they were intended to cut 
off all negotiation and intercourse between the State au- 
thorities and foreign nations. Holmes v. Jennison, 14 
Peters, 572. 

This prohibition is political in its character, and has no 
reference to mere matters of contract, or to the grant of a 
franchise, which in nowise conflicts with the powers dele- 
gated to the general government by the States. Un. Br. 
R. R. Co. V. Ga. R. R. Co. 14 Ga. 327. 



ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTION. 161 



ARTICLE II, 



SECTION I. 



Clause 1. — The Executive power shall be vested in 
a President of the United States of America. He 
shall hold his office during the term of four years, 
and together with the Vice-President, chosen for 
the same term, be elected as follows : 

Clause 2. — Each State shall appoint, in such man- 
ner as the legislature thereof may direct, a num- 
ber of electors, equal to the whole number of 
Senators and Representatives to which the State 
may be entitled in the Congress ; but no Senator 
or Representative, or person holding an office of 
trust or profit under the United States, shall be 
appointed an elector. 

Clause 3. — The Congress may determine the time 
of choosing the electors, and the day on which 
they shall give their votes ; which day shall be 
the same throughout the United States. 



Mr. Randolph's Plan. — That a national executive he 
instituted, to be chosen by the national legislature for the 
term of years, — to be inehgible thereafter — to pos- 
sess the executive power of Congress, &c. 

14* 



162 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

Mr. Pinckney's Plan. — " The executive power of the 
United States shall be vested in a President of the United 
States of America, which shall be his style ; and his title 

shall be His Excellency. He shall be elected for 

years, and shall be reeligible." 

Mr. E-andolph's Plan being under consideration, in 
committee of the whole, — 

Mr. Wilson moved, — " That the national executive 
consist of a single person." 

Mr. Gerry and Mr. Randolph opposed a unity in the 
executive magistracy. Before the question was taken, 

Mr. Wilson suggested a further amendment, that the 
election be by the people for a term of three years, and 
that the President should be eligible for a second term. 

Mr. PiNCKNEY, of South Carolina, and Mr. Mason, of 
Virginia, expressed their views in favor of a term of seven 
years and ineligibility for reelection. On the question of 
seven years, it was carried. Yeas — New York, New Jer- 
sey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Virginia, 5. Nays - — Con- 
necticut, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, 4. 
Massachusetts divided. 

On the question of ineligibility for a second term, it was 
also carried. 

Mr. Wilson, of Pennsylvania, moved, " that the execu- 
tive magistrate should be elected by electors, to be chosen 
by the people in prescribed election districts." Lost. Yeas 
■ — Pennsylvania and Maryland, 2. Nays — 8. 

For electing the executive by the national legislature, as 
proposed by Mr. Randolph's plan, for a term of seven 
years, it was agreed to. Yeas — Massachusetts, Connec- 
ticut, New York, Delaware, Virginia, North Carolina, 
South Carolina, and Georgia, 8. Nays — Pennsylvania 
and Maryland, 2. 

Mr. Rutledge moved that the executive consist of " one 
person." Agreed to. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 1(33 

Plan proposed by Mr. Patterson, in behalf of the New- 
Jersey delegates : — 

That the United States in Congress be authorized to 

elect a federal executive, to consist of persons, to 

continue in office for the term of years. 

Mr. Hamilton suggested his plan, namely, — The su- 
preme executive authority of the United States, to be 
vested in a governor, to be elected to serve during good 
behavior ; the election to be made by electors chosen by 
the people in election districts. 

These several propositions were considered in the com- 
mittee of the whole, who reported the following: — 

" That a national executive be instituted, to consist of a 
single person ; to be chosen by the national legislature for 
the term of seven years." 

Mr. GouvERNEUR Morris moved to strike out " national 
legislature^^ and insert " citizens of the United States,''^ so 
as to make the choice of President by the popular vote. 

Pennsylvania alone supported this motion. 

The words, " to be chosen by the national legislature," 
agreed to, nem. con, as also were the two following clauses. 

The words, " to be ineligible a second term " were 
stricken out, on motion by Mr. Houston. This vote was 
subsequently reconsidered. 

Dr. Mc Clung, of Virginia, moved to strike out '^ seven 
years," and insert " during good behavior." 

Mr. G. Morris and Mr. Broome supported the motion. 

Mr. Madison suggested, that there was an analogy 
between the executive and judiciary departments, but 
whether the plan proposed was a proper one, was another 
question. 

The motion was disagreed to. New Jersey, Delaware, 
Pennsylvania, and Virginia, having voted in the affirma* 
tive, and the other States in the negative. 



164 ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTION. 

Note. — These remarks of Mr. Madison, and the vote of that State on 
T>r. McClung's proposition, are understood to have been given, rather in 
compliment to the mover than as expressing the real sentiments of the 
parties. 

On motion by Mr. Morris, the whole subject of the 
constitution of the executive was reconsidered. 

Mr. Ellsworth moved to strike out " to be chosen by 
the national legislature," and insert "to be chosen by 
electors, to be appointed by the legislatures of the States," 
which was agreed to. Subsequently reconsidered, and 
appointment by the national legislature was reinstated. 

" To be ineligible a second term," disagreed to. 

To continue " seven years," disagreed to, and " six 
years" substituted. 

" To be removable by impeachment," to receive fixed 
compensation, and " to be paid out of the national treas- 
ury," and the qualified veto, were agreed to. 

On Col. Mason's motion, the term of seven years, to be 
ineligible to a second term, was reinstated. 

Referred to the committee of detail, who reported as 
follows : — 

" The executive power of the United States shall be 
vested in a single person. His style shall be, ' The Presi- 
dent of the United States of America,' and his title shall 
be, ' His Excellency.' He shall be elected by ballot by the 
legislature. He shall hold his office during the term of 
seven years ; but shall not be elected a second time." 

The clause, " he shall be elected by ballot, by the legis- 
lature," being up, 

Mr. Carroll moved to strike out " legislature," and in- 
sert " people." Pennsylvania and Delaware alone sup- 
ported the motion. 

Mr. RuTLEDGE moved to insert "joint" before "ballot." 

Messrs. Sherman, Dayton, and Brearly, opposed, and 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 165 

Messrs. Gorham, Wilson, Langdon, and Madison, sup- 
ported the motion, which prevailed. 

Mr. Dayton then moved to add — " each State having 
one vote^^ which was lost. Yeas — Connecticut, New 
Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, and Georgia, 5. Nays — 
New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Vu'ginia, 
North Carolina, and South Carolina, 6. 

Mr. G. Morris expressed strong opposition to the elec- 
tion of the President by the legislature, and proposed to 
substitute " he shall be chosen by electors to be chosen by 
the people of the several StatesJ" Disagreed to. Yeas 5, 
nays 6. 

In this condition, the subject was referred to the com- 
mittee of one from each State, — raised on motion of 
Mr. Sherman, to consider and report on the unfinished 
parts of the Constitution. The committee consisted of 
Messrs. Gilman, King, Sherman, Brearly, Morris, Dick- 
inson, Carroll, Madison, Williamson, Butler, and Baldwin. 
The committee was appointed on the 31st of August, and 
on the 4th of September, reported the following : — 

" The executive power of the United States shall be 
vested in a single person. His style shall be, ' The 
President of the United States of America.' And his 
title shall be ' His Excellency.' He shall hold his office 
during the term of four years, and together with the 
vice-president, chosen for the same term, be elected in 
the following manner, namely : Each State shall appoint, 
in such manner as its legislature may direct, a number of 
electors equal to the whole number of senators and 
members of the House of Representatives, to which the 
State may be entitled in the legislature. 

" The electors shall meet in their respective States, and 
vote by ballot for two persons, of whom one at least shall 
not be an inhabitant of the same State with themselves. 



166 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

And they shall make a list of aU the persons voted for, 
and of the number of votes for each ; which list they shall 
sign and certify, and transmit sealed to the seat of govern- 
ment of the United States, directed to the president of the 
Senate. The president of the Senate shall, in that house, 
open all the certificates, and the votes shall be then and 
there counted. The person having the greatest number 
of votes shall be the President, if such number be a 
majority of that of the electors ; and if there be more 
than one who have such majority, and have an equal 
number of votes, then the Senate shall immediately 
choose, by baUot, one of them for President; but if no 
person have a majority, then, from the five highest on the 
list, the Senate shall choose, by ballot, the President ; 
and in every case, after the choice of the President, the 
person having the greatest number of votes, shall be 
vice-president, but if there should remain two or more, 
who have equal votes, the Senate shall choose from them 
the vice-president. The legislature may determine the 
time of choosing and assembling the electors, and the 
manner of certifying and transmitting the votes." 

Mr. GoRHAM thought it objectionable that the next 
highest candidate after the election of President should 
become the vice-president without referring the decision 
to the Senate, as an obscure man, with few votes, might 
obtain the office. 

Mr. Sherman. — "The object of this' clause of the 
report was, to get rid of the ineligibility which was 
attached to the mode of election by the legislature, and 
to render the executive independent of the legislature." 

Mr. Madison suggested, as objections to allowing the 
elections to be made from the Jive highest candidates, that 
" the attention of electors would be turned too much to 
making candidates," thereby consigning the election 
altogether to the Senate. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 167 

Mr. Randolph and Mr. Pinckney called for an expla- 
nation from the committee, of their reasons for changing 
the mode of election which had been previously agreed to 
by the Convention. 

Mr. G. MoRKis explained. — " The first was, the danger 
of intrigue and faction, if the appointment should be 
made by the legislature. The next was, the inconven- 
ience of an ineligibility required by that mode, in order to 
lessen its evils. The third was, the difficulty of estab- 
lishing a court of impeachments, other than the Senate, 
which would not be so proper for the trial, nor the other 
branch for the impeachment of the President, if appointed 
by the legislature. In the fourth place, nobody had 
appeared to be satisfied with an appointment by the legis- 
lature. In the fifth place, many were anxious even for an 
immediate choice by the people. And finally, the sixth 
reason was, the indispensable necessity of making the 
executive independent of the legislature." 

Colonel Mason " confessed that the plan of the com- 
mittee had removed some capital objections, particularly 
the danger of cabal and corruption. It was liable, how- 
ever, to this strong objection, that nineteen times in 
twenty, the President would be chosen by the Senate, an 
improper body for the pm'pose." 

Mr. Pinckney objected, that it in fact threw the ap 
pointment into the hands of the Senate. 

Mr. Wilson regarded this as the most difficult question 
the Convention had had to decide. He thought the 
present plan a valuable improvement on the former. 
" He thought it might be better, however, to refer the 
eventual appointment to the legislature than to the 
Senate, and to confine it to a smaller number than five 
candidates." 

Mr. Randolph " preferred the former mode ; but if the 



168 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

change was to be made," he preferred that the eventual 
election should be made by the legislature. 

GouvERNEUR MoRRiS. — " The Senate was preferred, 
because fewer could then say to the President, ' You owe 
your appointment to us.'' " 

Mr. PiNCKNEY and Mr. Rutledge expressed their objec- 
tions to the mode reported by the committee, and their 
preference for adhering to the mode of election by joint- 
ballot of the legislature and the inehgibility to a reelec- 
tion. 

On the motion to reject this part of the report, North 
Carolina and South Carolina alone supported it. 

Mr. Wilson moved to strike out " Senate," and insert 
" legislature," as the body on whom the contingent elec- 
tion should devolve, which was lost. Yeas— Pennsyl- 
vania, Virginia, South Carolina ; the rest nay. 

Mr. Gerry " suggested that the eventual election 
should be made by six senators and seven representatives, 
to be chosen by joint ballot of the two houses," but the 
suggestion was not favorably received. 

On motion of Mr. King and Mr. Gerry, the follow- 
ing words were added : — 

" But no person shall be appointed an elector who is a 
member of the legislature of the United States, or who 
holds any office of trust or profit under the United 
States." 

Motions by Mr. Spaight and Mr. Williamson for ex- 
tending the term to " seven " and " six " years having 
been rejected, " four," was agreed to. 

The same members then moved " that the electors meet 
at the seat of the government," with the view of requiring 
them to make an election, without a reference to the 
Senate. North Carolina alone supported the motion. 

Mr. Williamson moved to substitute for " Senate," " the 
legislature voting by States." 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 169 

Mr. Sherman concurring in this view, moved to strike 
out "the Senate shall immediately choose," and substi- 
tute : — 

" The House of Representatives shall immediately 
choose by ballot, one of them for President, the members 
from each State having one vote." This, after consid- 
erable debate, was agreed to, and on motion of Mr. 
King, the w^ords, — " But a quorum for this purpose shall 
consist of a member or members from two thirds of the 
States," — and on motion of Mr. Gerry, the words, — 
" and a concurrence of a majority of all the States shall 
be necessary to make a choice," were severally added. 

It was then sent to the committee on style and revision, 
who gave it the form in which it was adopted. 

Note. — The time of choosing the electors, is the Tuesday next after 
the first Monday in November. 5 Stat. 721. 

The electors are to meet on the first Wednesday in December. 1 Stat. 
239. 

15 



170 ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTION. 



ARTICLE IT. 

SECTION I. 

Clause 5. — No person except a natural born citizen, 
or a citizen of the United States, at the time of 
the adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible 
to the office of President ; neither shall any per- 
son be eligible to that office who shall not have 
attained to the age of thirty-five years, and been 
fourteen years a resident within the United 
States. 



Mr. Gerky moved, " that the committee on detail be 
instructed to report proper qualifications for the Presi- 
dent," &c. 

Mr. RuTLEDGE, from the committee, reported : — 

" He shall be of the age of thirty-five years, and a citi- 
zen of the United States, and shall have been an inhabi- 
tant thereof for twenty-one years." 

This was subsequently referred, with such parts of re- 
ports as had not been acted on, to a committee of a mem- 
ber from each State, who reported this clause of the Con- 
stitution as it stands. 



ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTION. 171 



ARTICLE II. 



SECTION I. 



Clause 6. — In case of the removal of the President 
from office, or of his death, resignation, or inability 
to discharge the powers and duties of the said 
office, the same shall devolve on the Vice-Presi- 
dent, and the Congress may by law provide for 
the case of removal, death, resignation, or inability, 
both of the President and Vice-President, declar- 
ing what officer shall then act as President, and 
such officer shall act accordingly, until the disabil- 
ity be removed, or a President shall be elected. 



Mr. Pinckney's Plan. — "In case of his removal, death, 
resignation, or disability, the president of the Senate shall 
exercise the duties of his office until another President be 
chosen, and in case of the death of the President of the 
Senate, the speaker of the House of Delegates shall do 
so." 

The committee on detail reported the following : — 
" In case of his removal [by impeachment] , death, re- 
signation, or disability to discharge the powers and duties 
of his office, the president of the Senate shall exercise 
those powers and duties, until another President of the 
United States be chosen, or until the disabihty of the 
President be removed." 



172 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

Mr. Morris and Mr. Madison objected to the provision 
making the president of the Senate provisional President 
of the United States, — the former suggesting the chief 
justice. 

Mr. Williamson thought this subject should be left 
with Congress. 

Mr. Dickinson asked, — " What is the extent of the 
term disability ? and who is to judge of it ? " 

In this condition the subject was sent to the committee 
on the unfinished reports, &c., who reported the follow- 
ing : — 

" In case of his removal, as aforesaid, death, absence, 
resignation, or inability to discharge the powers or duties 
of his office, the vice-president shall exercise those powers 
and duties, until another President be chosen, or until the 
inability of the President be removed." 

This was amended, on motion of Mr. Randolph (and 
Mr. Madison), by adding — 

" The legislature may declare by law what officer of the 
United States shaU act as President, in case of the death, 
resignation, or disability of the President and vice-presi- 
dent, and such officer shaU act accordingly, until such dis- 
ability be removed or a President shall be elected." 

In this shape the subject was sent to the committee of 
style, &c. 

Note. — By the act of 1792, in case of vacancy in the offices of Presi- 
dent and vice-president, the president of the Senate, and if there be none, 
the speaker of the House of Representatives, assumes the duties of 
President, until an election is had. 

By the act of 1845, the electors of President and vice-president, are 
to be chosen on the Tuesday after the first Monday of November, in all 
the States. 



ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTION. 173 



ARTICLE II. 



SECTION I. 



Clause 7. — The President shall, at stated times, re- 
ceive for his services, a compensation, which shall 
neither be increased or diminished during the 
period for which he shall have been elected, and 
he shall not receive within that period any other 
emolument from the United States, or any of 
them. 

Before he enter on the execution of his office, he 
shall take the following oath or affirmation : — 

" I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faith- 
fully execute the office of President of the United 
States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, 
protect, and defend the Constitution of the United 
States." 



Mr. Randolph's Plan. — " To receive punctually, at 
stated times, a fixed compensation for the services ren- 
dered, in which no increase or diminution shall be made, 
so as to affect the magistracy existing at the time of the 
increase or diminution." 

Mr. Pingkney's Plan contained a similar provision • — as 
did also Mr. Patterson's. 

Dr. Franklin proposed to substitute the following : — 

" Whose necessary expenses shall be defrayed, but who 
15* 



174 ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTIOIT. 

shall receive no stipend, fee, or reward whatsoever for his 
services." 

This was seconded by Col. Hamilton, but no further 
action had on it. 

These " plans " also provided for the oath " faithfully to 
execute the office," &c. ; but the latter clause, " and will 
to the best of my judgment and power preserve, protect, 
and defend the Constitution of the United States," was 
added on motion of Col. Mason, seconded by Mr. Madison. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 175 



ARTICLE II. 



SECTION XL 



Clause 1. — The President shall be commander-in- 
chief of the army and navy of the United States, 
and of the militia of the several States when called 
into the actual service of the United States ; he 
may require the opinion, in writing, of the prin- 
cipal of&cer in each of the executive departments, 
upon any subject relating to the duties of their 
respective offices; and he shall have power to 
grant reprieves and pardons for offences against 
the United States, except in cases of impeachment. 



Mr. Pinckney's Plan. — " He shall be commander-in- 
chief of the army and navy, and of the militia of the sev- 
eral States." 

Mr. Sherman moved to amend the first part of this 
clause, by adding, in regard to the militia, " when called 
into the actual service of the United States," which was 
agreed to. 

Mr. Ellsworth suggested that a council ought to be 
provided for the President, and proposed that it should 
consist of "the president of the Senate, the chief justice, 
and the ministers as they might be established for the 
departments of foreign and domestic affairs, war, finance, 



176 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

and marine ; who should advise but not conclude the 
President." 

Mr. PiNCKNEY expressed the opinion that " the President 
should be at liberty to call for advice or not, as he might 
choose. He remarked, ' Give him an able council and it 
will thwart him ; a weak one and he will shelter himself 
under their sanction.' " 

Mr. Gerry was opposed to heads of departments or the 
chief justice having any thing to do with business con- 
nected with legislation. 

Mr. Dickinson was of opinion that the heads of depart- 
ments and other principal officers should be appointed by 
the legislature, but if made by the executive they would 
not be suitable councillors. 

Mr. Gouverneur Morris submitted, for the consideration 
of the committee of detail, the following : •— 

" To assist the President in conducting the public affairs, 
there shaU be a council of State composed of the following 
officers : — 

" The chief justice of the supreme court, who shall, from 
time to time, recommend such alterations of, and additions 
to, the laws of the United States as may, in his opinion, 
be necessary to the due administration of justice, and 
such as may promote useful learning, and inculcate sound 
morality throughout the Union. He shall be president of 
the council, in the absence of the President." 

He proposed that the other members of the council 
should consist of " the heads of the department of domestic 
affairs, of commerce and finance, of foreign affairs, of war, 
and of marine — all to be appointed during pleasure by the 
President. 

" The President shall appoint a secretary of state, to 
hold his office during pleasure ; who shall be secretary to 
the council of State, and also public secretary to the 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 177 

President. It shall be his duty to prepare all public de- 
spatches from the President, which he shall countersign. 
' " The President may, from time to time, submit any 
matter to the discussion of the council of State, and he 
may require the written opinions of any one or more of 
the members. But he shall in aU cases exercise his own 
judgment, and either conform to such opinions or not as 
he may think proper ; and every officer above mentioned 
shaU be responsible for his opinion on the aflfairs relating 
to his particular department." 

The committee reported the following : — 

" The President of the United States shall have a privy 
council, which shall consist of the president of the Senate, 
the speaker of the House of Representatives, the chief 
justice of the Supreme Court, and the principal officer in 
the respective departments of foreign affairs, domestic 
affairs, war, marine, and finance, as such departments of 
office shaU, from time to time, be established ; whose duty 
it shall be to advise him in matters respecting the execu- 
tion of his office, which he shall think proper to lay before 
them ; but their advice shall not conclude him nor affect 
his responsibihty for the measures which he shall adopt." 

This proposition having been sent to the committee of 
States, they reported, in lieu of it, the following, to be 
added to the powers of the President : — 

" And may require the opinion in writing, of the princi- 
pal officer in each of the executive departments, upon any 
subject relating to the duties of their respective offices." 

Col. Mason said, " That in rejecting a council to the 
President, we were about to try an experiment, on which 
the most despotic government had never ventured. The 
grand seignior himself had his divan." 

He moved to instruct the committee of States " to pre- 
pare a clause or clauses for establisMng aii executive 



178 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

council, as a council of State for the President of the 
United States ; to consist of six members, two of which 
from the eastern, tw^o from the middle, and two from the 
southern States, with a rotation of office similar to those 
of the Senate ; such council to be appointed by the legis- 
lature, or the Senate." 

Dr. Franklin seconded the motion. " We seemed," he 
said, " too much to fear cabals in appointments by a num- 
ber, and to have too much confidence in those of single 
persons. Experience showed that caprice, the intrigues 
of favorites and mistresses, were, nevertheless, the means 
most prevalent in monarchies. . . . He thought a council 
would not only check a bad President, but be a relief to a 
good one." 

Mr. Morris. — " The question of a council was consid- 
ered in the committee, where it was judged that the Presi- 
dent, by persuading his council to concur in wrong meas- 
ures, would acquire their protection for them." 

Mr. Madison, Mr. Dickinson, and Mr. Wilson favored 
the motion for a council, but it was negatived — Mary- 
land, South Carolina, and Georgia, yea ; the rest nay, 
and the clause was agreed to, as reported. . 



Judicial Constructions. — The President may pardon as 
well before trial and conviction as afterward. 6 Opin. 20. 
He may grant a conditional pardon. Ex parte Welles, 
18 How. 307. See also, 5 How. 368, 7 Pet. 161. The 
pardoning power includes that of remitting fines, penal- 
ties, and forfeitures under the revenue laws. 6 Opin. 329. 
See also, 6 Opin. 393 ; 4 id. 573 ; 3 id. 317, 362. He has 
no power to remit the forfeiture of a bail-bond. 4 id. 
144. A pardon is a private, thougla official act ; it must 
be delivered to and accepted by the criminal. United 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 179 

States V. Wilson, 7 Peters, 150. He can order a nolle 
prosequi at any stage of a criminal proceeding in the 
name of the United States. 5 Opin. 729. 

The President is not obliged to take, personally, the 
command of the militia . . . but may place them under 
command of officers of the army of the United States. 
Any officer of the army may, therefore, be required, by 
orders emanating from the President, to perform the ap- 
propriate duties of his station in the miKtia, when in the 
service of the United States. 2 Opin. 711 ; 2 Story, 
Const 1490, 



180 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 



ARTICLE II 

SECTION II. 

Clause 2. — He shall have power, by and with the 
advice and consent of the Senate, to make treaties, 
provided two thirds of the Senators present con- 
cur ; and he shall nominate, and, by and with the 
advice and consent of the Senate, shall appoint 
ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls, 
judges of the Supreme Court, and all other officers 
of the United States whose appointments are not 
herein otherwise provided for, and which shall be 
established by law ; but the Congress may by law 
vest the appointment of such inferior officers as 
they think proper, in the President alone, in the 
courts of law, or in the heads of departments. 

Clause 3. — The President shall have power to fill 
up all vacancies that may happen during the re- 
cess of the Senate, by granting commissions which 
shall expire at the end of their next session. 



Mr. Pinckney's Plan. — " The Senate shall have the 
sole and exclusive power to declare war, and to make 
treaties, and to appoint ambassadors, and other ministers 
to foreign nations, and judges of the Supreme Court." 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 181 

First Report of Committee of the Whole. — That the 
national executive have power " to appoint to offices in 
cases not otherwise provided for." 

Report of Committee of Detail. — The President " shall 
commission aU the officers of the United States ; and shall 
appoint officers in all cases not otherwise provided for by 
this Constitution." 

Mr. Madison suggested that the President should have 
an agency in making treaties. 

Mr. Dickinson moved, as a substitute for " and shall 
appoint," &c., " and he shall appoint to aU offices estab- 
lished by this constitution, except in cases herein other- 
wise provided for ; and to all offices which may hereafter 
be created by law." Agreed to. 

These propositions having been referred to the commit- 
tee of eleven, Mr. Breary, from the committee, reported 
as follows : — 

" The President, by apd with the advice and consent of 
the Senate, shall have power to make treaties ; and he 
shall nominate, and by and with the advice and consent 
of the Senate, shall appoint ambassadors and other pubhc 
ministers, judges of the Supreme Court, and all other offi- 
cers of the United States, whose appointments are not 
otherwise herein provided for. But no treaty shall be 
made without the consent of two thirds of the members 
present." 

On motion of Mr. Spaight, the following was added : — 

" The President shall have power to fill aU vacancies that 
may happen during the recess of the Senate, by granting 
commissions, which shall expire at the end of the next 
session of the Senate." 

On motion of Mr. Madison, " except treaties of peace," 
was inserted, so as not to require two thirds to make 

16 



182 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

such treaties. He then moved to authorize two thirds 
of the Senate to make treaties without the President, 
but it was not agreed to. After further debate, " except 
treaties of peace," was again stricken out. 

On motion of Mr. G. MoRms, this clause was in- 
serted : — 

" But the Congress may by law vest the appointment 
of such inferior officers as they think proper, in the Presi- 
dent alone, in the com-ts of law, or in the heads of depart- 
ments." 



Judicial Constructions. — 1. The nomination is the sole 
act of the President, and is completely voluntary. 

2. The appointment. This is also the act of the Presi- 
dent, though it can only be performed by and with the 
advice and consent of the Senate. 

3. The commission. To grant a commission to a per- 
son appointed, might perhaps be deemed a duty enjoined 
by the Constitution. 

The act of appointing to office, and commissioning the 
person appointed, are distinct acts. 

The Constitution contemplates cases where the law 
may direct the President to commission an officer, ap- 
pointed by the courts or by the heads of departments. In 
such a case, to issue a commission would be apparently a 
duty distinct from the appointment, the performance of 
which, perhaps, could not be legally refused. 

Where the officer is not removable at the wUl of the 
executive, the appointment is not revocable, and cannot 
be annulled ; it has conferred legal rights which cannot be 
resumed. Marbury v. Madison, 1 Cranch, 137-162. 

The power to appoint necessarily includes the power to 
remove. Ex parte Heman, 13 Peters, 259. See 2 Story, 
Const. 1538. 



ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTION. 183 

He may fill, during the recess of the Senate, a vacancy 
which occurred during the previous session (1 Opin. 631), 
or a vacancy which has occurred by the expiration of a for- 
mer temporary appointment, the Senate having neglected 
to act on a nomination to fill the place. 3 Ibid. 673 ; 4 
Tbid. 523-530. 



184 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 



ARTICLE II. 



SECTION III. 



He shall from time to time give to the Congress in- 
formation of the state of the Union, and recom- 
mend to their consideration such measures as he 
shall judge necessary and expedient ; he may, on 
extraordinary occasions, convene both Houses, or 
either of them, and in case of disagreement be- 
tween them, with respect to the time of adjourn- 
ment, he may adjourn them to such time as he 
shall think proper; he shall receive ambassadors 
and other public ministers ; he shall take care that 
the laws be faithfully executed, and shall commis- 
sion all the officers of the United States. 



Mr. Pinckney's Plan. — He shall, from time to time, 
give information to the legislature, of the state of the 
Union, and recommend to thek consideration the meas- 
ures he may think necessary. He shall take care that the 
laws of the United States be duly executed. He shall 
commission all the officers of the United States. He shall 
receive public ministers from foreign nations. 

Mr. RuTLEDGE, from the committee of detail, reported to 
add: — 

" He may convene them [the legislature] on extraor- 
dinary occasions. In case of disagreement between the 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 185 

two houses, with regard to the time of adjournment, he 
may adjourn them to such time as he may think proper." 

Mr. McHenry moved to strike out, " he may convene 
them," and insert, " he may convene both or either of the 
houses," in order to provide for convening the Senate 
separately. 

Mr. Wilson opposed the motion, on the ground that 
" it implied that the Senate might be in session when the 
legislature was not, which he thought improper." 

The motion prevailed. Yeas — New Hampshire, Con- 
necticut, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, North Caro- 
lina, and Georgia, 7. Nays — Massachusetts, Virginia, 
Pennsylvania, and South Carolina, 4. 

Note. — He has power to appoint commissioners and agents to make 
investigations required by acts or resolutions of Congress. 4 Opin. 248. 

16* 



186 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 



ARTICLE II. 

SECTION IV. 

The President, Vice-President, and all the civil offi- 
cers of the United States, shall be removed from 
office on impeachment for, and conviction of, 
treason, bribery, and other high crimes and mis- 
demeanors. 



The Virginia, the South Carolina, and the New Jersey 
plans for the federal government, provided severally for 
tlie impeachment of the executive and other civil officers, 
before the Supreme Court. 

Note. — A senator oi" representative in Congress is not sucli a civil 
officer. Blount's Trial, 22, 102; Whart. State Trials, 260, 316. 1 Story, 
Const. 793,802. Nor is a territorial judge, being not a constitutional, 
but a legislative officer merely. 3 Opin. 409. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 387 



ARTICLE III 



SECTION I. 



The judicial power of the United States shall be 
vested in one Supreme Court, and in such inferior 
courts as the Congress may from time to time or- 
dain and establish. The judges, both of the su- 
preme and inferior courts, shall hold their of&ces 
during good behavior, and shall, at stated times, 
receive for their services a compensation, which 
shall not be diminished during their continuance 
in office. 



Mr. Randolph's Plan. — " That a national judiciary be 
established ; to consist of one or more supreme tribunals 
and of inferior tribunals; to be chosen by the national 
legislature," &c. 

On motion of Mr. Madison, " appointment by the legis- 
lature " was stricken out. 

Mr. Pincknet's Plan. — " The legislature of the United 
States shall have the power, and it shall be their duty to 
estabhsh such courts of law, equity, and admiralty as shall 
be necessary," &c. 

Mr. Randolph's resolution being under consideration in 
committee of the whole, the words "inferior tribunals" 
were stricken out, and on motion of Mr. Wilson, the 
words, " that the national legislature be empowered to in- 
stitute inferior tribunals," were added. 



188 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

Mr. Madison moved, "that the appointment of the 
judges should be made by the Senate." Agreed to, nem. 
con, 

Mr. Hamilton's Plan — suggested in a speech on the 
general subject. " The supreme judicial authority to be 
vested in judges to hold their offices during good behavior, 
with adequate and permanent salaries. The legislature of 
the United States to have power to institute courts in each 
State, for the determination of all matters of general 
concern." 

Mr. Patterson's (the New Jersey and New York) Plan. 
— " That a federal judiciary be established, to consist of a 
supreme tribunal, the judges of which, to be appointed by 
the executive and to hold their offices during good behav- 
ior ; to receive punctually, at stated times, a fixed com- 
pensation for their services, in which no increase nor dim- 
inution shall be made, so as to affect the persons actually 
in office at the time of such increase or diminution." 

The committee of the whole reported the following : — 
" That a national judiciary be established, to consist of one 
supreme tribunal, the judges of which shall be appointed 
by the second branch of the national legislature ; to hold 
their offices during good behavior, and to receive punc- 
tually, at stated times, a fixed compensation for their ser- 
vices, in which no increase or diminution shall be made, 
so as to affect the persons actually in office at the time of 
such increase or diminution. 

" That the national legislature be empowered to appoint 
inferior tribunals." 

Mr. GoRHAM moved to amend, by substituting the fol- 
lowing, for the mode of appointing the judges : — 

" That the judges be nominated and appointed by the 
executive, by and with the advice and consent of the 
second branch." 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 189 

This proposition was at first rejected by the Convention, 
but subsequently adopted. 

On motion of Mr. G. Morris, the words " increase or " 
were stricken out, so as to leave it in the power of the 
legislature to increase, but not diminish the salaries. 

The subject was then referred to the committee of de- 
tail, who reported as follows : — 

" The judicial power of the United States shall be vested 
in one Supreme Court, and in such inferior courts as shaU, 
when necessary, from time to time, be constituted by the 
legislature of the United States." 

" The judges of the Supreme Court and of the inferior 
courts shaU hold their offices during good behavior. They 
shall at stated times, receive for their services a compen- 
sation, which shall not be diminished during their con- 
tinuance in office." 

Mr. Dickinson proposed to add, — " Provided, that they 
m.ay be removed by the executive, on application by the 
Senate and House of Representatives." 

Connecticut alone supported the motion. 

A motion to reinstate the words " increased or " before 
" diminished," was supported by Virginia alone. 



Judicial Constructions.-— The jurisdiction of the courts of 
the United States depends entirely on the constitution and 
laws of the United States. Am. Ins. Co. v. Canter, 1 
Peters, 511. 

Congress has the power to define the jurisdiction of the 
infedor courts. 8 How. 448. 

A territorial court, held by judges whose appointments 
are for four years, cannot be the depository of any part of 
the judicial power conferred by the Constitution on the 
general government. Am. Ins. Co. v. Bales of Cotton, 
1 Peters, 511. 



190 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 



AETICLE III. 

SECTION XL 

Clause 1. — The judicial power shall extend to all 
cases, in law and equity, arising under this Consti- 
tution, the laws of the United States, and treaties 
made, or which shall be made, under their author- 
ity ; to all cases affecting ambassadors, other public 
ministers and consuls; to all cases of admiralty 
and maritime jurisdiction ; to controversies to 
which the United States shall be a party ; to con- 
troversies between two or more States ; between 
a State and citizens of another State ; between cit- 
izens of different States ; between citizens of the 
same State claiming lands under grants of different 
States ; and between a State, or the citizens thereof, 
and foreign States, citizens, or subjects. 

Clause 2. — In all cases affecting ambassadors, other 
public ministers, and consuls, and those in which a 
State shall be a party, the Supreme Court shall 
have original jurisdiction. In all the other cases 
before mentioned, the Supreme Court shall have 
appellate jurisdiction, both as to law and fact, with 
such exceptions, and under such regulations^ as 
the Congress shall make. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 191 

Ml'. Randolph's Plan. — " That the jurisdiction of the 
inferior tribunals shall be to have and determine, in the 
first instance, and of the supreme tribunal, in the dernier 
resort, all piracies and felonies on the high seas ; captures 
from an enemy ; cases in which foreigners, or citizens of 
other States, applying to such jurisdictions may be inter- 
ested ; or which respect the collection of the national rev- 
enue, impeachment of any national officers, and questions 
which may involve the national peace and harmony." 

Mr. Pinckney's Plan. — " One of these courts shall be 
termed the Supreme Court ; whose jurisdiction shall ex- 
tend to all cases arising under the laws of the United 
States, or affecting ambassadors, other public ministers 
and consuls ; to the trial or impeachment of officers of the 
United States ; to all cases of admiralty and maritime 
jurisdiction. In cases of impeachment affecting ambassa- 
dors and other public ministers, this jurisdiction shall be 
original ; and in all other cases, appellate." 

Mr. Hamilton's Plan. — " This court to have original 
jurisdiction in all cases of capture, and an appellate juris- 
diction in all cases in which the revenues of the general gov- 
ernment or the citizens of foreign nations are concerned." 

Mr. Patteeson's Plan. — " That the judiciary so estab- 
lished shall have authority to hear and determine, in the 
first instance, on all impeachments of federal officers, and 
by way of appeal, in the dernier resort, in all cases touch- 
ing the rights of ambassadors ; in all cases of captures from 
the enemy ; in aU cases of piracies and felonies on the 
high seas ; in aU cases in which foreigners may be inter- 
ested ; in the construction of any treaty or treaties, or 
which may arise on any of the acts for tlie regulation of 
trade, or the collection of the federal revenue." 

These several propositions having been considered in 



192 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

committee of the whole, the committee recommended the 
following : " That the jurisdiction of the national judiciary 
shall extend to all cases which respect the collection of the 
revenue, impeachments of any national officers, and ques- 
tions which involve the national peace aiid harmony." 

Mr. PiNCKNEY proposed to add, — 

" The jurisdiction of the Supreme Com-t shall be ex- 
tended to all controversies between the United States and 
an individual State, or the United States and the citizens 
of an individual State." 

These propositions being approved by the Convention, 
were referred to the committee of detail, who embodied 
them in the following form : — 

" The jurisdiction of the Supreme Court shall extend to 
all cases arising under laws passed by the legislature of 
the United States ; to all cases affecting ambassadors, 
other public ministers and consuls ; to the trial of im- 
peachments of all officers of the United States ; to all 
cases of admiralty and maritime jurisdiction ; to contro- 
versies between two or more States (except such as shall 
regard territory or jurisdiction) ; between a State and citi- 
zens of another State ; between citizens of different States, 
and between a State or citizens thereof and foreign States, 
citizens, or subjects. In cases of impeachment, cases af- 
fecting ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls, 
and those in which a State shall be a party, this jurisdic- 
tion shall be original. In all other cases before mentioned, 
it shall be appellate, with such exceptions and under such 
regulations as the legislature shall make. 

" The legislature may assign any part of the jurisdiction 
above mentioned (except the trial of the President of the 
United States), in the manner and under the limitations 
which it shall think proper, to such inferior courts as it 
shall constitute from time to time." 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTIOJST. 193 

On motion of Dr. Johnson, the words " both in law and 
equity," were inserted in the first paragraph. 

The words " this constitution and the," were inserted in 
the first clause, on motion of Dr. Johnson. 

Mr. Madison says, " the motion of Dr. Johnson was 
agreed to nem. con., it being generally supposed that the 
jurisdiction given was constructively limited to cases of a 
judiciary nature." 

The last clause of the committee's report was stricken 
out, and then the clause was sent to the committee of 
style and revision. 



Judicial Constructions. — Congress may pass all laws 
which are necessary for giving the most complete effect to 
the exercise of the admiralty and maritime jm-isdiction 
granted in the Constitution to the United States ; but the 
general jurisdiction, subject to this grant, adheres to the 
territory, as a portion of sovereignty not yet given away. 
3 Wheat 336. 

Jurisdiction is given to the courts of the United States 
in two classes of cases. In the first, their jurisdiction de- 
pends on the character of the cause, whoever may be the 
parties. This class comprehends all cases in law and 
equity arising, &c. In the second class, the jurisdiction 
depends entirely on the character of the parties. In this 
class are comprehended controversies between, &c. If 
these be the parties, it is entirely unimportant who may be 
the subjects of the controversy. A case in law or equity 
consists of the rights of the one party as well as of the 
other, and it is said to arise under the Constitution or a 
law of the United States, whenever its correct decision 
depends on the construction of either. Osborn v. United 
States, 9 Wheat. 819. See also, 6 Wheat. 378. 

17 



194 ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTION. 

The original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court cannot 
be enlarged, but its appellate jurisdiction may be exercised 
in every case cognizable under the 3d Article of the Con- 
stitution, &c. 6 Wheat. 397. 

The executive department may constitutionally execute 
every law which the legislature may constitutionally make, 
and the judicial department may receive from the legisla- 
ture the power of construing every such law. 9 Wheat. 
733. 

Congress cannot by law assign the judicial department 
any duties but such as are of a judicial character ; that is, 
appointing the judges of the circuit court, to receive and 
determine upon claims of persons to be placed on the 
pension list. 2 Dail. 409. 

The words of the Constitution must be taken to refer 
to the admiralty and naaritime jurisdiction of England. 
4 Dall. 426, 429. 

The authority given to the Supreme Court, by the act 
establishing the judicial courts of the United States, to 
issue writs of mandamus to public officers, is not warranted 
by the Constitution. 1 Cranch, 176. 

An act of Congress cannot invest the Supreme Court 
with an authority not warranted by the Constitution. 1 
Cranch, 175, 176. 

The legislature of a State cannot annul the judgment 
or determine the jurisdiction of the courts of the United 
States. 5 Cranch, 115. 

Congress cannot vest any portion of the judicial power 
of the United States, except in courts ordained and estab- 
Hshed by itself. 1 Wheat. 304, 380. 

The grant in the Constitution, to the United States, of 
all cases of admiralty and maritime jurisdiction, does not 
extend to a cession of the waters in which those cases 
may arise, or of the general jurisdiction over them. 3 
Wheat. 336. 



ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTION. 195 



ARTICLE III. 



SECTION II. 



Clause 3. — The trial of all crimes, except in cases of 
impeachment, shall be by jury ; and such trial 
shall be held in the State where the said crimes 
shall have been committed ; but when not com- 
mitted within any State, the trial shall be at such 
place or places as the Congress may by law have 
directed. 



Mr. Pinckney's Plan. — " AU criminal offences, except 
in cases of impeachment, shall be tried in the State where 
they shall be committed. The trials shall be open and 
public, and shall be by jmy." 

This clause does not appear to have attracted any notice 
in the Convention, and was probably introduced by the 
committee of style and revision, upon their own motion. 



196 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 



AETICLE III, 



SECTION III. 



Treason against the United States, shall consist only 
in levying war against them, or in adhering to 
their enemies, giving them aid and comfort. No 
person shall be convicted of treason unless on the 
testimony of two witnesses to the same overt act, 
or on confession in open court. 

The Congress shall have power to declare the pun- 
ishment of treason, but no attainder of treason 
shall work corruption of blood, or forfeiture except 
during the life of the person attainted. 



Mr. Pinckney's Plan. — " The legislature of the United 
States shall have the power to declare the punishment of 
treason, which shall consist only in levying war against 
the United States, or any of them, or in adhering to their 
enemies. No person shall be convicted of treason but by 
the testimony of two witnesses." 

Committee on detail recommended the following : — 
" Treason against the United States shall consist only 
in levying war against the United States or any of them, 
and in adhering to the enemies of the United States or 
any of them. The legislature of the United States shall 
have power to declare the punishment of treason. No 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION". 197 

person shall be convicted of treason unless on the testi- 
mony of two witnesses. No attainder of treason shall 
work corruption of blood, nor forfeiture, except during the 
life of the person attainted." 

On motion of Mr. Wilson, the words " or any of them " 
were stricken out, and the words " to the same overt act," 
after " witnesses " were added. 

Mr. Wilson and others still thought the clause ambigu- 
ous, and it was modified by general consent, so as to read, 
" Treason against the United States shall consist only in 
levying war against them, or in adhering to their enemies." 

Col. Mason moved to add the w^ords, " giving' the?n aid 
and comfort,^' and Mr. L. Martin the words " or on con- 
fession in open court ; " both of which motions were 
agreed to. 

Mr. Dickinson thought the definition stni vague, and 
suggested whether the two witnesses should concur in the 
same " overt act." 

Mr. Madison expressed the opinion that the definition 
of treason was too restricted, and that more latitude over 
the subject should be left to the discretion of the legis- 
lature. 

Mr. Morris thought Congress should have the exclusive 
right to declare what should constitute treason against the 
United States. In case of a contest between the United 
States and a particular State, the people of the latter must, 
under the disjunctive terms of the clause, be traitor to one 
or other authority. 

In order to remove this difficulty, the words " or any of 
them" were stricken out. 

Mr. Madison. — " This has not removed the embarrass- 
ment. The same act might be treason against the United 
States, as here defined, and against a particular State 
under its laws." 

17* 



198 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTIOJiT. 

Dr. Johnson " was of opinion that there could be no 
treason against a particular State — the sovereignty being 
in the Union." 

Mr. Morris suggested the form in which the clause was 
finally adopted. 



Judicial Constructions. — There must be an actual levy- 
ing of war ; a conspiracy to subvert the government by 
force is not treason ; nor is the mere enlistment of men, 
who are not assembled, a levying of war. Ex parte Bol- 
man, 4 Cr. 75. No man can be convicted of treason who 
was not present when the war was levied. 2 Burr's Trial, 
401, 439. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 199 



AETICLE IV. 



SECTION I. 



Clause 1. — Full faith and credit shall be given in 
each State to the public acts, records, and judicial 
proceedings of every other State. And the Con- 
gress may by general laws prescribe the manner 
in which such acts, records, and proceedings shall 
be proved, and the effect thereof 



Articles of Confederation. — " Full faith and credit shall 
be given in each of these States to the records, acts, and 
judicial proceedings of the courts and magistrates of every 
other State." 

The committee of detail gave the article the following 
form : — 

" Full faith shall be given in each State to the acts of 
the legislatures, and to records and judicial proceedings of 
the courts and magistrates of every other State." 

Mr. Williamson preferred the provision in the Articles 
of Confederation. ~ 

Mr. PiNCKNET wished the article to be recommitted, 
with a proposition " to establish uniform laws upon the 
subject of bankruptcies," &c. 

Mr. Randolph submitted the following : — 



200 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

" Whenever the act of any State, whether legislative, 
executive, or judiciary, shall be attested and exemplified, 
under the seal thereof, such attestation and exempHfica- 
tion shall be deemed, in other States, as full proof of the 
existence of that act ; and its operation shall be binding 
in every other State in all cases to which it may relate, 
and which are within the cognizance and jurisdiction of 
the State wherein the said act was done." 

Mr. G. Morris moved the following : — 

" Full faith ought to be given, in each State, to the 
public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of every 
other State ; and the legislature shall, by general laws, 
determine the proof and effect of such acts, records, and 
proceedings." 

These propositions were all referred to a select com- 
mittee, who reported the following : — 

" FuU faith and credit ought to be given, in each State, 
to the public acts, records, and judicial proceedings, of 
every other State ; and the legislature shall, by general 
laws, prescribe the manner in which such acts, records, 
and proceedings shall be proved, and the effect which 
judgments, obtained in one State, shall have in an- 
other." 

Mr. G. Morris, moved to strike out all after the word 
" effect " in the last line, and insert " thereof." 

Dr. Johnson, " thought the amendment as worded, 
would authorize the general legislature to declare the 
effect of legislative acts of one State in another State." 

Mr. Randolph " considered it as strengthening the 
general objection against the plan, that its definition of 
the powers of the government was so loose as to give it 
opportunities of usurping all State powers. He was 
for not going further than the report, which enables the 
legislature to provide for the effect oi judgments. ^^ 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 201 

The amendment of Mr. Morris prevailed. Yeas 6 ; 
Nays 3 (Maryland, Virginia, Georgia). 

On Mr. Madison's motion, " shall " was substituted for 
" ought to," and then the article was agreed to. 



Judicial Construction. — A judgment of a State court 
has the same credit, validity, and effect, in every court 
within the United States, which it had in the State in 
which it was rendered. Hampton v. McConneU, 3 Wheat. 
234. 

They have only such effect as they possessed in the 
State in which they were taken. Bank of Ala. v. Dalton, 
9 How. 528. See also, 1 Stat. 129, and 9 How. 528. 



202 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION". 



ARTICLE IV. 



SECTION II. 



Clause 1. — The citizens of each State shall be enti- 
tled to all privileges and immunities of citizens in 
the several States. 



Articles of Confederation. — " The better to secure and 
perpetuate mutual friendship and intercourse among the 
people of the different States in this Union, the free 
inhabitants of each of these States, paupers, vagabonds, 
and fugitives from justice excepted, shall be entitled to all 
privileges and immunities of free citizens in the several 
States ; and the people of each State shall have free 
ingress and regress to and from any other State, and shall 
enjoy therein all the privileges of trade and commerce, 
subject to the same duties, impositions, and restrictions as 
the inhabitants thereof respectively, provided that such 
restriction shall not extend so far as to prevent the removal 
of property imported into any State, to any other State of 
which the owner is an inhabitant ; provided, also, that no 
impositions, duties, or restriction shall be laid by any 
State, on the property of the United States, or either of 
them." 

The committee on detail, reported the clause as it 
stands in the Constitution. 

Gen. PiNCKNEY expressed his dissatisfaction with it as 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 203 

reported. He wished " some provision should be included 
in favor of slave property." 

On its adoption, South Carolina voted nay, and Geor- 
gia was divided. All the other States voted in the affirm- 
ative 



judicial Constructions. — Since the adoption of the Con- 
stitution, no State can, by any subsequent law, make a 
foreigner, or any other description of persons, citizens of 
the United States, nor entitle them to the rights and priv- 
ileges secured to citizens by that instrument. Dred Scott 
V. Sanford, 19 How. 393. 

Citizenship, when spoken of in the Constitution, in ref- 
erence to the jurisdiction of federal courts, means nothing 
more than residence. Gas. v. Bal., 6 Pet. 761. 

A free negro, of the African race, whose ancestors were 
brought to this country and sold as slaves, is not a citi- 
zen within the meaning of the Constitution. Dred Scott 
V. Sanford, 19 How. 393. 

It does not embrace privileges conferred by the local 
laws of a State. Conner v. EUiot, 18 How. 591. 



204 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION 



ARTICLE IV 



SECTION II. 



Clause 2. — A person charged in any State with 
treason, felony, or other crime, who shall flee from, 
justice, and be found in another State, shall on 
demand of the executive authority of the State 
from which he fled, be delivered up, to be re- 
moved to the State having jurisdiction of the crime. 



Articles of Confederation. — " If any person guilty of, 
or charged with, treason, felony, or other high misde- 
meanor in any State, shall flee from justice, and be found 
in any of the United States, he shall, upon demand of the 
governor or executive power of the State from which he 
fled, be delivered up and removed to the State having 
jurisdiction of the offence." 

This article was reported by the committee of detail, as 
it stood in the Articles of Confederation. 

In Convention, the words " other crime " were substi- 
tuted for " high misdemeanor," as more comprehensive 
and less liable to technical restriction. 

Mr. Butler moved to add a clause requiring " fugitive 
slaves and servants to be delivered up hke criminals." 

It was objected by Mr. Wilson, that " that would 
oblige the executive of the State to do it at the public 
expense." - 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 205 

Mr. Sherman saw " no more propriety in the public 
seizing and surrendering a slave or servant than a horse." 

The proposition was withdrawn for the present, and the 
article adopted. 



Judicial Construction. — It is not necessary that the crime 
alleged should constitute an offence at the common law. 
It is enough that it is a crime against the laws of the 
State from which he fled. Johnson v. Eiley, 13 Geo. 97. 

A fugitive from justice may be arrested and detained 
until a formal requisition can be made by the proper au- 
thority. Com. V. Deacon, 10 S. & R. 135 ; Dow's case, 6 
Harris, 39 ; Wm. Fetter's case, 3 Zabr. 311. 

The crime must have been committed in the State from 
which the party is claimed to have been a fugitive — and 
he must be actually a fugitive from that State. Ex parte 
Jos. Smith, 3 M'Lean, 133. 



18 



206 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTIOIf. 



AKTICLE IV. 



SECTION II. 



Clause 3. — No person held to service or labor in 
one State, under the laws thereof, escaping into 
another, shall, in consequence of any law or regu- 
lation therein, be discharged from such service or 
labor, but shall be delivered up on claim of the 
party to whom such service or labor may be due. 



Articles of Confederation of the United Colonies of 
New England, adopted in 1643. 

" It is also agreed, that if any servant run away from 
his master into any other of these confederated jurisdic- 
tions, that in such case, upon the certificate of one magis- 
trate in the jurisdiction out of which the said servant 
fled, or upon other due proof, the said servant shall be 
delivered either to his master or to any other that pursues 
and brings such certificate or proof." 

In the Constitutional Convention — The clause requiring 
the rendition of fugitives from justice to be delivered up, 
being under consideration, — 

Mr. Butler and Mr. C. Pinckney, " moved to require 
fugitive slaves and servants to be delivered up like crimi- 
nals." 

Mr. Wilson suggested that the effect of that proposi- 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 207 

tion would be to " oblige the executive of a State to do 
it at the public expense." 

Mr. Sherman " saw no more propriety in the public 
seizing and surrendering a slave or servant than a horse." 

Mr. Butler then withdrew the proposition, and at a 
subsequent day moved it, as an independent proposition, 
as follows : — 

" If any person bound to service or labor in any of the 
United States shall escape into another State, he shall 
not be discharged from such service or labor, in conse- 
quence of any regulations subsisting in the State to which, 
they escape, but shall be delivered up to the person justly 
claiming their service or labor." This was now agreed to 
without a division, being regarded as a part of the com- 
promise for the authority given to Congress to pass navi- 
gation laws by majority vote. 

Mr. Madison says, that when this article, as reported 
by the committee of style and arrangement, was under 
consideration, " on motion of Mr. Randolph, the word 
' servitude ' was struck out and ' service^ unanimously 
inserted, the former being thought to express the condi- 
tion of slaves, and the latter the obligation of free 
persons." 



Judicial Constructions. — This includes apprentices. 
Bouler v. Cuin, 1 Am. Law Rep. 654. 

This does not extend to the case of a slave voluntarily 
carried by his master into another State, and there leav- 
ing him under the protection of some law declaring him 
free. Vaughan v. Williams, 3 McLean, 530. Slavery is 
a municipal regulation ; is local, and cannot exist without 
authority of law. Miller v. McQuerry, 5 McLean, 469. 
But the question, whether slaves are made free by going 



208 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

into a State in which slavery is not tolerated, with the 
permission of their master, is purely one of local law, 
and to be determined by the courts of the State in which 
they are found. Stroder v. Graham, 10 Howard, 82 ; 
Dred Scott v. Sanford, 19 How. 396. 

The owner of a slave is clothed with full authority in 
every State of the Union, to seize and recapture his slave, 
whenever he can do it without a breach of the peace or 
any illegal violence. Prigg v. Pa. 16 Pet. 539. But it 
is under the Constitution and laws of the United States 
only, that the owner of a slave has a right to reclaim him 
in a State where slavery does not exist. There is no 
principle in the common law, in the law of nations or of 
nature which authorizes such recapture. Giltna v. Gorham, 
4 McLean, 412. The Constitution recognizes slaves as 
property, and pledges the general government to protect 
it. Dred Scott v. San. 19 How. 395. 

A statute which punishes harboring or secreting a slave 
is not unconstitutional. Moore v. Illinois, 14 How. 13. 

The 2d Sec. 4th Art. of the Constitution, does not 
extend to a slave voluntarily earned by his master into 
another State and then left under the protection of a lav/ 
declaring him free, but to slaves escaping from one State 
to another. Butler v. Hopper, 1 Wash. C. C. R. 499. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 209 



ARTICLE IV. 

SECTION III. 

Clause 1. — New States may be admitted by the 
Congress into this Union; but no new State shall 
be formed or erected within the jurisdiction of any 
other State ; nor any State be formed by the 
junction of two or more States, or parts of States, 
without the consent of the le2:islatures of the 
States concerned, as well as of the Congress. 



Articles of Confederation. — " Canada acceding to this 
confederation, and joining in the measures of the United 
States, shall be admitted into, and entitled to all the ad- 
vantages of this Union, but no other colony shall be admit- 
ted into the same, unless such admission be agreed to by 
nine States." 

Mr. Randolph's Plan. — "That provision ought to be 
made for the admission of States lawfully arising \vithin 
the limits of the United States, whether from a voluntary 
junction of government and territory or otherwise, with 
the consent of a number of voices in the national legisla- 
ture less than the whole." 

Mr. Pinckney's Plan. — " The legislature shall have 
power to admit new States into the Union on the same 
terms with the original States, provided that two thirds of 
the members present in both houses agree." 

18* 



210 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTIOlir. 

Mr. Patterson's (N.J.) Plan. — " That provision be 
made for the admission of new States into the Union." 

These several propositions having been considered in 
the committee of the whole, they reported the following : — 

" That provision ought to be made for the admission of 
States, lawfully arising within the limits of the United 
States, whether from a voluntary junction of government 
and territory, or otherwise, with the consent of a number 
of voices in the national legislature, less than the whole." 

The Convention concurred in this report, and sent the 
clause to the committee of detail. 

Report of Coinmittee of Detail. — " New States, lawfully 
constituted or established within the limits of the United 
States, may be admitted by the legislature, into this gov- 
ernment ; but to such admission, the consent of two thirds 
of the members present in each house, shall be necessary. 
If a new State shall arise within the limits of any of the 
present States, the consent of the legislatures of such 
States shall also be necessary to its admission. If the 
admission be consented to, the new States shall be admit- 
ted on the same terms with the original States. But the 
legislature may make conditions with the new States con- 
cerning the public debt which shall be then subsisting." 

Mr. Morris moved to strilvc out, " If the admission be 
consented to," &c., to the end of the paragraph, — not 
wishing to bind Congress to admit the western States on 
such terms. 

Mr. Madison insisted that the " western States neither 
would nor ought to submit to a union which degraded 
them from an equal rank with the other States." 

Mr. Sherman was for equality among the States. 

Mr. Williamson was for leaving the terms to Congress. 

Mr. Morris having modified his motion, it was adopted 
in the following form : — 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTIOlSr. 211 

" New States may be admitted by the legislature into 
the Union ; but no new State shall be erected within the 
limits of any of the present States, without the consent 
of the legislature of such State, as well as of the general 
legislature." 

On motion of Mr. Dickinson, the clause in regard to the 
junction of two or more States was added, and the clause 
was referred to the committee of style and revision. 



212 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 



ARTICLE IV. 



SECTION III. 



Clause 2. — The Congress shall have power to dis- 
pose of and make all needful rules and regula- 
tions respecting the territory or other property 
belonging to the United States; and nothing in 
this Constitution shall be so construed as to 
prejudice any claims of the United States, or of 
any particular State. 



Mr. Madison proposed the following additional powers 
to be vested in Congress. 

" To dispose of the unappropriated lands of the United 
States. 

" To institute temporary governments for new States 
arising therein." 

Referred to a general committee. 

The subject of the admission of new States being under 
consideration, — 

Mr. Carroll moved the following : — 

" Provided, nevertheless, that nothing in this Consti- 
tution shall be construed to affect the claim of the United 
States to vacant lands ceded to them by the treaty of 
peace." 

Mr. Wilson. — " There was nothing in the Constitution 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 213 

affecting, one way or the other, the claims of the United 
States, and it was best to insert nothing, leaving every- 
thing on that litigated subject in statu quo.'" 

Mr. Madison " considered the claim of the United 
States as in fact favored by the jurisdiction of the judicial 
power of the United States over controversies to which 
they should be parties. He thought it best to be silent on 
the subject. He did not view the proviso of Mr. Carroll 
as dangerous ; but to make it neutral and fair, it ought to 
go further and declare that the claims of particular States 
also should not be affected." 

Mr. Sherman and Mr. Baldwin favored the proviso, 
with Mr. Madison's amendment. 

Mr. Carroll modified his amendment so as to read : — 

" Nothing in this constitution shall be construed to 
alter the claims of the United States or of the individual 
States to the western territory ; but all such claims shall 
be examined into by the Supreme Court of the United 
States." 

Mr. G. Morris proposed as a substitute the follow- 
ing : — 

" The legislature shall have power to dispose of, and 
make all needful rules and regulations respecting the 
territory or other property belonging to the United States ; 
and nothing in this Constitution contained shall be so con- 
strued as to prejudice any claims, either of the United 
States or of any particular State." 

Mr. L. Martin moved to add : — 

" But all such claims may be examined into and de- 
cided upon, by the Supreme Court of the United 
States." 

IVIr. Morris thought the addition unnecessary, as the 
Supreme Court was already invested with jurisdiction in 
all cases where the United States were a party. 



214 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

Mr. Martin's amendment was rejected, and the propo- 
sition of Mr. Morris agreed to, Maryland alone voting in 
the negative. 

Mr. Madison, in connection with his amendment to 
authorize Congress " to institute temporary governments 
for new States," remarked that the Congress of the Con- 
federation had been embarrassed by the want of power to 
institute territorial governments in that portion of the ter- 
ritory of the United States outside of the territorial juris- 
dictions of the State authorities ; and had been compelled 
to usurp the power to organize such governments. He 
thought the power should be specifically given to the leg- 
islature of the United States. The committee, to whom 
his motion was referred, made no report on the subject, 
and it does not seem to have attracted any further atten- 
tion. 



Judicial Constructions. — The term territory^ in this 
clause, is merely descriptive of one land of property, and 
is equivalent to the term lands. U. S. v. Gratiot, 14 Pet. 
537. 

This clause applies only to territory within the char- 
tered limits of some one of the States, when they were 
colonies of Great Britain. It does not apply to territory 
acquired by the present federal government, by treaty or 
conquest from a foreign nation. Dred Scott v. Sanford, 
19 How. 395. 

The right to govern would seem to be the inevitable 
consequence of the right to acquire territory. Am. Ins. 
Co. V. Canter, 1 Pet. 542 ; U. S. v. Gratiot, 14 Pet. 537 ; 
Cross V. Harrison, 16 How. 194. 

The United States, under the present Constitution, 
cannot acquire territory to be held as a colony, to be 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 215 

governed at its will and pleasure. But it may acquire 
territory which, at the time, has not a population that fits 
it to become a State, and may govern it as a territory, 
until it has a population which, in the judgment of 
CongTess, entitles it to be admitted as a State of the 
Union. During the time it remains a territory, Congress 
may legislate over it, within the scope of its constitutional 
powers, in relation to citizens of the United States, — and 
may establish a territorial government — and the form of 
this local government must be regulated by the discretion 
of Congress, — but with powers not exceeding those 
which Congress itself, by the Constitution, is authorized 
to exercise over citizens of the United States, in respect 
to their rights of persons or rights of property. The 
territory thus acquired is acquired by the people of the 
United States, for then* common and equal benefit ; and 
every citizen has a right to take with him into the terri- 
tory any article of property, including his slaves ; which 
the Constitution recognizes as property, and pledges 
the federal government for its protection. Dred Scott v. 
Sanford, 19 How. 395. 



216 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 



ARTICLE IV 



SECTION IV. 



The United States shall guaranty to every State m 
this Union a republican form of government, and 
shall protect each of them against invasion, and, 
on application of the legislature, or of the Execu- 
tive (when the legislature cannot be convened), 
against domestic violence. 



Mr. Randolph's Plan. — " That a repubhcan govern- 
ment and the territory of each State, except in the 
instance of a voluntary junction of government and terri- 
tory, ought to be guarantied by the United States to each 
State." 

Mr. Pinckney's Plan. — " On the apphcation of the 
legislature of a State, the United States shall protect it 
against domestic insurrection." 

On these propositions the committee of the whole 
house reported : — 

" That a republican constitution and its existing laws 
ought to be guarantied to each State by the United 
States." 

On motion by Mr. Wilson, the following was substi- 
tuted : — 

" Tliat a republican form of government shall be guar- 



ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTION. 217 

antied to each State ; and that each State shall be pro- 
tected against foreign and domestic violence." In this 
form it was referred to the committee on detail, who 
reported the two following clauses : — 

Congress shall have the power — " to subdue a rebel- 
lion in any State, on the application of its legislature." 

2. " The United States shall guaranty to each State a 
republican form of government; and shall protect each 
State against foreign invasions, and, on the application of 
its legislature, against domestic violence." 

Motions to strike out — " on the application of its 
legislature against," and to substitute " insurrections," for 
" domestic violence," were rejected. 

On motion by Mr. Dickinson, " or executive " after " leg- 
islature," was added. 

19 



218 ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTIOIT. 



ARTICLE V. 

The Cono-ress, whenever two thirds of both Houses 
shall deem it necessarjj shall propose amendments 
to this Constitution, or, on the application of the 
legislatures of two thirds of the several States, 
shall call a convention for proposing amendments, 
which in either case shall be valid, to all intents 
and purposes, as part of this Constitution, when 
ratified by the legislatures of three fourths of the 
several States, or by conventions in three fourths 
thereof, as the one or the other mode of ratifica- 
tion may be proposed by the Congress ; provided 
that no amendment which may be made prior to 
the year one thousand eight hundred and eight 
shall in any manner affect the first and fourth 
clauses in the ninth section of the first article; 
and that no State without its consent, shall be de- 
prived of its equal suffrage in the Senate. 



Articles of Confederation. — " And the articles of this 
confederation shaU be inviolably observed by every State, 
and the Union shall be perpetual ; nor shall any alteration 
at any time hereafter be made in any of them, unless such 
alteration be agreed to in a Congress of the United States, 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION". 219 

and be afterwards confirmed by the legislature of every 
State." 

Mr. Randolph's Plan. — " That provision ought to be 
made for the amendment of the articles of Union when- 
soever it shall seem necessary ; and that the assent of the 
national legislature ought not to be required thereto." 

Mr. Pinckney's Plan. — " If two thirds of the legisla- 
tures of the States apply for the same, the legislature of 
the United States shall call a convention for the purpose 
of amending the Constitution ; or should Congress, with 
the consent of two thirds of each house, propose to the 
States amendments to the same, the agreement of two 
thirds of the legislatures of the States shall be sufficient to 
make the said amendments parts of the Constitution." 

On these propositions the committee of the whole re- 
ported, " That provision ought to be made for the amend- 
ment of the articles," which was agreed to, and referred to 
the committee on detail, who gave it the following form : — 

" On the application of the legislatures of two thirds of 
the States in the Union, for an amendment of this Con- 
stitution, the legislature of the United States shall call a 
convention for that purpose." 

Mr. Sherman proposed to amend the report by adding 
the following : — "Or the legislature may propose amend- 
ments to the several States for their approbation ; but no 
amendments shall be binding until consented to by the 
several States." 

Mr. Wilson moved to amend the amendment so as to 
make it competent for three fourths of the States to make 
amendments, which was agreed to. Mr. IVIadison then 
offered the following substitute : — 

" The legislature of the United States, whenever two 
thirds of both houses shall deem necessary, or on the 
application of two thirds of the legislatm-es of the several 



220 ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTION. 

States, shall propose amendments to this Constitution, 
which shall be valid, to all intents and purposes, as part 
thereof, when the same shall have been ratified by three 
fourths at least of the legislatures of the several States, or 
by conventions in three fourths thereof, as one or the other 
mode of ratification may be proposed by the legislature of 
the United States." 

Mr. E-UTLEDGE " said he never would agree to give a 
power by which the articles relating to slaves might be 
altered by the States not interested in that property, and 
prejudiced against it." 

To obviate this objection, the following was added : — ■ 

" Provided that no arrangements which may be made 
prior to the year 1808, shall in any manner affect the fourth 
and fifth sections of the seventh article." 

In this form the substitute was adopted. 

Mr. Sherman proposed, as an additional proviso, " that 
no State should be affected in its internal police, or de- 
prived of its equality in the Senate." 

Mr. Madison opposed this motion, and it was lost ; but 
on the manifestation of very decided dissatisfaction on the 
part of Connecticut, New Jersey, and Delaware, Mr. MoR- 
EIS renewed so much of Mr. Sherman's motion as related 
to the equal suffrage in the Senate, and it was agreed to 
without a division. 

Mr. Randolph offered the following, and remarked that 
if it were not adopted, it would be impossible for him to 
sign the instrument : — 

" That amendments to the plan might be offered by the 
State conventions, which should be submitted to, and 
finally decided on by another general convention." 

On this proposition, all the States voted in the negative. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION". 221 



ARTICLE yi. 

Clause 1. — All debts contracted and engjaecements 
entered into before -the adoption of this Constitu- 
tion, shall be as valid against the United States 
under this Constitution, as under the confedera- 
tion. 



Articles of Confederation. — "All bills of credit emitted, 
moneys borrowed, and debts contracted, by or under the 
authority of Congress, before the assembling of the 
United States, in pursuance of the present confederation, 
shall be deemed and considered a charge against the 
United States, for payment and satisfaction, whereof the 
said United States, and the pubhc faith, are hereby sol- 
emnly pledged." 

Mr. RuTLEDGE — the subject having given rise to con- 
siderable discussion — moved the appointment of a grand 
committee " to consider the necessity and expediency of 
the United States assuming all the State debts." The 
committee was ordered. Yeas — Massachusetts, Connec- 
ticut, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, 6. 
Nays — New Hampshire, New Jersey, Delaware, Mary- 
land, 4. 

Gov. Livingston reported, from the committee the fol- 
lowing : " The legislature of the United States shall have 
power to fulfil the engagements which have been entered 
into by Congress, and to discharge, as well the debts of 

19* 



222 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

the United States, as the debts incurred by the several 
States during the late war, for the common defence and 
general welfare." 

Mr. Sherman and Mr. "Williamson proposed that pro- 
vision should be made for settling the war accounts upon 
the principle adopted for the ratio of taxation and repre- 
sentation. 

Mr. Ellsworth thought it unnecessary specially to con- 
fer the power to fulfil the public engagements, as the 
United States were aheady bound to do so. 

Mr. Randolph and Mr. Madison thought that, although 
the United States would be bound, the new government 
would have no authority in the case, unless it was 
specially given. 

Mr. Gerry regarded it essential that specific provision 
should be made " so that no pretext might remain for get- 
ting rid of the public engagements." 

Mr. G. Morris moved the following substitute : — 

" The legislature shall discharge the debts and fulfil the 
engagements of the United States." This was carried 
unanimously. But subsequently, on motion of Mr. Ran- 
dolph, the above clause of the Constitution was substi- 
tuted. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 223 



ARTICLE VI. 

Clause 2. — This Constitution, and the Laws of the 
United States which shall be made in pursuance 
thereof, and all treaties made, or which shall be 
made, under the authority of the United States, 
shall be the supreme law of the land ; and the 
judges in every State shall be bound thereby, 
any thing in the Constitution or laws of any State 
to the contrary notwithstanding. 



Articles of Confederation. — " Every State shall abide 
by the determinations of the United States in Congress 
assembled, on all questions which, by this confederation, 
are submitted to them. And the articles of this confed- 
eration shall be inviolably observed by every State, and 
the Union shall be perpetual."' 

Mr. Patterson's Plan. — " That all acts of the United 
States in Congress, made by virtue and in pursuance of 
the powers hereby, and by the Articles of Confederation 
vested in them, and all treaties made and ratified under 
the authority of the United States, shall be the supreme 
law of the respective States, so far forth as those acts or 
treaties shall relate to the said States or their citizens ; 
and that the judiciary of the several States shall be bound 
thereby in their decisions, any thing in the respective laws 
of the individual States to the contrary notwithstanding.'' 



224 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

The clause in Mr. Randolph's resolutions, giving Con- 
gress power " to negative all laws passed by the several 
States contravening, in the opinion of the national legis- 
lature, the articles of union or any treaty subsisting under 
the authority of the Union ; and to call forth the force of 
the Union against any member of the Union failing to 
fulfil its duty under the articles thereof," being under con- 
sideration, — 

Mr. Luther Martin moved as a substitute, the above 
clause of Mr. Patterson's plan, which was agreed to. This 
was finally modified, on motion of Mr. E-utledge, so as to 
read nearly as it stands in the Constitution. 



. Judicial Constructions. — Whenever a right grows out of, 
or is protected by a treaty, it is sanctioned against all the 
laws and judicial decisions of the States ; and whoever 
has this right, it is to be protected. Owings v. Nor. Les. 
5 Cranch, 348. 

But though a treaty is the law of the land, and its pro- 
visions must be regarded by the courts as equivalent to an 
act of the legislature, when it operates directly on a sub- 
ject, yet if it be merely a stipulation for future legislation 
by Congress, it addresses itself to the political and not to 
the judicial department, and the latter must await the 
action of the former. Foster v. Neilson, 2 Pet. 253. 

A treaty duly ratified is the supreme law of the land, 
and the courts have no power to examine into the author- 
ity of the persons by whom it was entered into on behalf 
of the foreign nation. Doe v. Braden, 16 How. 635. 

Though a treaty is the law of the land, under the Con- 
stitution, Congress may repeal it, so far as it is a munici- 
pal law, provided its subject-matter be within the legisla- 
tive pow*^r. Taylor v. Morton, 2 Curt. C. C. 454. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 225 



ARTICLE VI. 

Clause 3. — The Senators and Representatives before 
mentioned, and the members of the several State 
legislatures, and all executive and judicial officers, 
both of the United States and of the several States, 
shall be bound by oath or affirmation to ^ipport 
this Constitution ; but no religious test shall ever 
be required as a qualification to any office or pub- 
lic trust under the United States. 



Mr. Rajstdolph's Plan. — " That the legislative, exec- 
utive, and judiciary powers, within the several States, 
ought to be bound by oath, to support the articles of 
Union." 

Mr. Williamson suggested that a reciprocal oath should 
be requhed from the national officers, to support the gov- 
ernments of the States. 

On motion of Mr. Gehry, " and officers of the national 
government" was inserted after the words " several States." 

Mr. PiNCKNEY moved to add, " No reUgious test or 
qualification shall ever be annexed to any oath of office 
under the authority of the United States." 

These several propositions having been agreed to and 
referred to the committee of detail, were reported in the 
following form : — 

" The members of the legislatures and the executive and 



^26 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

judicial officers of the United States, and of the several 
States, shall be bound by oath to support this Constitu- 
tion." 

Mr. C. PiNCKNEY renewed his motion in regard to relig- 
ious tests, and it was agreed to, and the clause was sent 
to the committee of style and arrangement. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 227 



AETICLE VII. 

The ratification of the conventions of nine States, 
shall be sufficient for the establishment of this Con- 
stitution between the States so ratifying the same. 



The articles of confederation were ratified by the State 
legislatures. 

Mr. Randolph's Plan. — " That the amendments which 
shall be offered to the confederation by the convention 
ought, at a proper time or times, after the approbation of 
Congress, to be submitted to an assembly or assemblies of 
representatives, recommended by the several legislatures to 
be expressly chosen by the people, to consider and decide 
thereon." 

Mr. Ellsworth moved its reference " to the legislatures 
of the States ; " and Mr. G. Moreis, " to a general con- 
vention to be chosen by the people, and authorized to con- 
sider, amend, and establish the plan," neither of which 
was received with favor. 

Mr. Sherman expressed the opinion that the assent of 
Congress and the subsequent ratification of the several 
State legislatures would give the Constitution the proper 
sanction. 

Mr. Madison regarded it as essential that the direct 
action of the people should be had ; and that the new 
Constitution should be ratified in the most unexceptiona- 



228 ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTION. 

ble form by the supreme authority of the people them- 
selves. 

Mr. Gerry was apprehensive that the Constitution 
would be defeated if it should be subjected to the direct 
action of the people. 

Mr. Wilson " hoped the provision for ratifying would 
be put on such a footing as to admit of a partial union, 
with a door open for the accession of the rest." 

Mr. PiNCKNEY proposed, that if nine States should ratify 
it it should be put into operation between such States. 

These several propositions were sent to the committee 
on detail, who reported the following : — 

" The ratifications of the conventions of ■ States 

shall be sufficient for organizing this Constitution." 

Mr. Wilson proposed to fiU the blank with " seven." 

Mr. Sherman named " ten," as the present articles re- 
quired unanimity to make changes. 

Mr. Randolph thought "nine" the proper number, 
"being a respectable majority." 

Mr. Madison remarked that, " if the blank should be 
filled with ' seven,' ' eight,' or ' nine,' the Constitution as 
it stands might be put in force over the whole body of 
the people, though less than a majority of them should 
ratify it." 

Mr. Wilson. — " As the Constitution stands, the States 
only which ratify it can be bound." 

Mr. Butler was for filling the blank with " nine." " He 
revolted at the idea that one or two States should restrain 
the rest from consulting their safety." 

Mr. Carroll moved " thirteen " — " unanimity being 
necessary to dissolve the existing confederacy." 

On motion of Mr. King the words "between said 
States " were added. 

Mr. Madison moved to fill the blank with the follow- 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 229 

ing : — " Any seven or more States entitled to thirty-three 
members at least, in the House of Representatives, ac- 
cording to the allotment made in the third section of the 
fom-th article," thus requiring the concurrence of a major- 
ity both of the States and people. 

The questions were then taken on filling the blank, and 
"thirteen" and "ten" were severally rejected. The ques- 
tion being on " nine " — 

Col. Mason remarked that he was for preserving ideas 
familiar to the people. Nine States had been required in 
all great cases under the Confederation, and that number, 
on that account, was preferable. 

On the question for this number — the vote was, yeas 8, 
nays 3, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, voting 
in the negative. 

20 



AMENDMENTS. 



ARTICLE I. 

Congress shall make no law respecting an establish- 
ment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise 
thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or 
of the press ; or the right of the people peaceably 
to assemble, and to petition the government for a 
redress of grievances. 



Mr. Charles Pinckney's Plan of a Federal Constitu- 
tion, submitted to the Convention, contained the follow- 
ing : — 

" The legislature of the United States shall pass no law 
on the subject of religion, nor touching or abridging the 
liberty of the press." 

The New Hampshire convention, in adopting the Con- 
stitution, proposed the following amendment : — 

" Congress shall make no laws touching religion, or to 
infringe the rights of conscience." 

The Virginia and North Carolina conventions recom- 
mended the following : — 

" That the people have a right peaceably to assemble 

(230) 



ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTION'. 231 

together to consult for the common good, or to instruct 
their representatives ; and every citizen has a right to pe- 
tition or to apply to the legislature for a redress of 
grievances. 

" That the people have a right to freedom of speech, 
and of writing and publishing their sentiments ; that the 
freedom of the press is one of the greatest bulwarks of 
liberty and ought not to be violated. 

" That no particular religious society ought to be 
favored or established by law in preference to others." 

In the House of Representatives, Mr. Tucker, of South 
Carolina, moved to add after " grievances " — and " to 
instruct their representatives." 

Mr. Gerry, of Massachusetts, advocated, and Mr. Mad- 
ison opposed the amendment, and it was rejected, yeas 10, 
nays 41. 



Judicial Construction. — The legislature may enact laws 
more effectually to enable all sects to accomplish the great 
objects of religion by giving them corporate rights for the 
management of property, &c. 6 Cranch, 43. 



232 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 



ARTICLE II. 

A well-regulated militia being necessary to the secu- 
rity of a free State, the right of the people to keep 
and bear arms shall not be infringed. 



The Virginia and New York conventions, for adopting 
the Constitution, proposed the following amendment : — 

" That the people have a right to keep and bear arms ; 
that a well-regulated militia, composed of the body of the 
people, trained to arms, is the proper, natural, and safe 
defence of a free State," and " that any person religiously 
scrupulous of bearing arms, ought to be exempted, upon 
payment of an equivalent to employ another in his stead." 

The New Hampshire convention proposed : — 

" Congress shall never disarm any citizen, unless such as 
are or have been in actual rebelhon." 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 233 



ARTICLE III. 

No soldier shall, in time of peace, be quartered in 
any house without the consent of the owner, nor 
in time of war but in a manner to be prescribed 
by law. 

Mr. PiNCKNEY, in the Constitutional Convention, pro- 
posed the following : — 

" No soldier shall be quartered in any house, in time of 
peace, without consent of the owner." 

The Virginia and North Carohna conventions, for 
adopting the Constitution, proposed the above clause as 
an amendment. 



20 



234 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 



ARTICLE IV. 

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, 
houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable 
searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no 
warrants shall issue but upon probable cause, sup- 
ported by oath or affirmation, and particularly 
describing the place to be searched, and the per- 
sons or things to be seized. 



The Virginia and North Carolina conventions proposed, 
as an amendment : — 

" That every freeman has a right to be secure from all 
unreasonable searches and seizm-es of his person, his 
papers, and his property," &c. 



Judicial Constructions. — This refers only to processes 
to be issued under the authority of the United States. 
Smith V. Maryland, 18 How. 71. And it has no applica- 
tions to proceedings for the recovery of debts. Murray's 
Lessee v. Hob. Land & Ins. Co. 18 How. 272. See also 
Exparte Burford, 3 Cr. 448. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 235 



ARTICLE V. 

No person shall be held to answer for a capital or 
otherwise infamous crime, unless on a present- 
ment or indictment of a grand jury, except in 
cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the 
militia when in actual service, in time of war or 
public danger ; nor shall any person be subject 
for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy 
of life or limb ; nor shall be compelled in any 
criminal case to be a witness against himself; nor 
be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without 
due process of law ; nor shall private property be 
taken for public use without just compensation. 



The Massachusetts and New Hampshire conventions 
recommended the following amendment : — 

" That no person shall be tried for any crime, by which 
he may incur an infamous punishment, or loss of hfe, 
until he be first indicted by a grand jury, except in such 
cases as may arise in the government and regulation of 
the land and naval forces." 

The Vhginia and North Carohna conventions, recom- 
mended by way of amendments a bill of rights ; among 
which were the following : — 

" That in all capital and criminal prosecutions a man 



236 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

hath a right to demand the cause and nature of his accu- 
sation, to be confronted with his accusers and witnesses, 
to call for evidence, and be allowed counsel in his favor, 
and to a fair and speedy trial by an impartial jury of the 
vicinage, without whose unanimous consent he cannot 
be found guilty (except in the government of the land 
and naval forces) ; nor can he be compelled to give 
evidence against himself." 

" That no freeman ought to be taken, imprisoned, or dis- 
seized of his freehold, liberties, privileges, or franchises, or 
outlawed, or exiled, or in any manner destroyed, or de- 
prived of his life, liberty, or property, but by the law of the 
land." 



Judicial Constructions. — The court may discharge a 
jury from giving a verdict without the consent of the 
prisoner, whenever in their opinion there is a manifest 
necessity for such an act, or the ends of public justice 
would be otherwise defeated. U. S. v. Perez, 9 Wheat. 
579. See also, 18 How. 276. 

The last clause of this article is only a limitation to 
the power of the general government ; it has no applica- 
tion to the legislation of the several States. Barron v. 
Mayor of Baltimore, 7 Pet. 243. 

These amendments to the Constitution are exclusively 
restrictions upon the federal power, intended to prevent 
interference with the rights of the States and of their 
citizens. Fox v. Ohio, 5 How. 434. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 237 



AETICLE VI. 

In all criminal prosecutions the accused shall enjoy 
the right to a speedy and public trial, by an im- 
partial jury of the State and district wherein the 
crime shall have been committed, which district 
shall have been previously ascertained by law ; 
and to be informed of the nature and cause of the 
accusation ; to be confronted with the witnesses 
against him; to have compulsory process for ob- 
taining witnesses in his favor ; and to have the 
assistance of counsel for his defence. 



[See recommendation of Virginia under the preceding 
article.] 



Judicial Constructions. — It is only intended that this 
right of trial by jury shall be secured for those charged 
with crimes which, by our former laws and customs, had 
been tried by jury. U. S. v. Duane, Wall, 106. 

Any person charged with a crime in the courts of the 
United States, has a right before as well as after indict- 
ment, to the process of the court to compel the attendance 
of his witnesses. 1 Burr's Trial, 179. 



238 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 



ARTICLE VII. 

In suits at common law, where the value in contro- 
versy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of 
trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact tried 
by a jury shall be otherwise reexamined in any 
court of the United States, than according to the 
rules of the common law. 



ARTICLE VIII. 

Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive 
fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments 
inflicted. 



ARTICLE IX. 

The enumeration in the Constitution of certain rights 
shall not be construed to deny or disparage others 
retained by the people. 



The Virginia and North Carolina conventions recom- 
mend the following amendment : — 



ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTION. 239 

" That excessive bail ought not to be required, nor ex- 
cessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments 
inflicted." 



Judicial Constructions. — This includes not merely 
modes of proceeding known to the common law, but all 
suits, not of equity or admiralty jurisdiction, in which legal 
rights are to be settled and determined. Parsons v. Bul- 
ford, 3 Pet. 433 ; United States v. La Vengeance, 3 Dall. 
297 ; Webster v. Reid, 11 How. 437. 

The right of the trial by jury is for the benefit of the 
parties litigating, and may be waived by them. United 
States V. Rathbone, 2 Paine, 578. 

The circuit courts have no power to order a peremp- 
tory nonsuit against the will of the plaintiff". Elmore v. 
Grimes, 1 Pet. 469. See also, 6 Pet. 598. 

The common law, alluded to, is not the common law of 
any individual State, but the common law of England ; 
according to which, facts once tried by a jury, are never 
reexamined, unless a new trial be granted in the discretion 
of the court before which the suit is depending, for good 
cause shown, or unless the judgment of such court be re- 
versed by a superior tribunal, &c. United States v. Won- 
son, 1 GaU. 20. 



240 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 



ARTICLE X. 

The powers not delegated to the United States by 
the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, 
are reserved to the States respectively, or to the 
people. 



The Massachusetts and New Hampshire conventions 
recommended the following amendment : ■ — 

" That it be explicitly declared that all powers not ex- 
pressly delegated by the aforesaid Constitution, are re- 
served to the several States to be by them exercised." 

The South Carolina convention '•'-Resolved, that no sec- 
tion or paragraph of the said Constitution warrants a con- 
struction that the States do not retain every power not 
expressly relinquished by them and vested in the general 
ofovernment of the Union." 

The Virginia convention proposed : — 

" That each State in the Union shall respectively retain 
every power, jurisdiction, and right, which is not by this 
Constitution delegated to the Congress of the United 
States, or to the departments of the Federal Government." 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 241 



ARTICLE XI. 

The judicial power of the United States shall not be 
construed to extend to any suit in law or equity, 
commenced or prosecuted against one of the 
United States by citizens of another State, or by 
citizens or subjects of any foreign State. 



Judicial Constructions. — If the State be not necessarily 
a defendant, though its interests may be afi'ected by the 
decision, the courts of the United States are bound to ex- 
ercise jurisdiction. Lon. R. R. Co. v. Letson, 2 How. 
550. 

A State by becoming interested with others in a bank- 
ing or trading corporation, or by owning all the capital 
stock, does not impart to that corporation any. of its priv- 
ileges or prerogatives. It lays down its sovereignty, so 
far as respects the transactions of the corporation. Bank 
of the United States v. Plariters Bank of Ga. 9 Wheat. 
904 ; Dorrington v. Bank of Alabama, 13 How. 12. 

21 



242 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 



ARTICLE XII. 

The electors shall meet in their respective States, 
and vote by ballot for President and Vice-Presi- 
dent, one of whom at least shall not be an inhab- 
itant of the same State with themselves; they 
shall name in their ballots the person voted for as 
President, and in distinct ballots the person voted 
for as Vice-President; and they shall make dis- 
tinct lists of all persons voted for as President, 
and of all persons voted for as Vice-President, and 
of the number of votes for each ; which lists they 
shall sign and certify, and transmit sealed to the 
seat of the government of the United States, 
directed to the President of the Senate. The 
President of the Senate shall, in the presence of 
the Senate and House of Representatives, open 
all the certificates, ands* the votes shall then be 
counted ; the person having the greatest number 
of votes for President shall be the President, if 
such number be a majority of the whole number 
of electors appointed ; and if no person have 
such majority, then from the persons having the 
highest numbers, not exceeding three, on the list 
of those voted for as President, the House of 
Representatives shall choose immediately by bal- 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION". 243 

lot the President. But in choosing the President, 
the votes shall be taken by States, the representa- 
tion from each State having one vote ; a quorum 
for this purpose shall consist of a member or 
members from two thirds of the States, and a 
majority of all the States shall be necessary to a 
choice. And if the House of Representative 
shall not choose a President whenever the right 
of choice shall devolve upon them, before the 
fourth day of March next following, then the 
Vice-President shall act as President as in the case 
of the death or other constitutional disability of 
the President. 

The person having the greatest number of votes as 
Vice-President shall be the Vice-President, if such 
number be a majority of the whole number of 
electors appointed ; and if no person have a ma- 
jority, then, from the two highest numbers on the 
list, the Senate shall choose the Vice-President : a 
quorum for the purpose shall consist of two thirds 
of the whole number of Senators, and a majority 
of the whole number shall be necessary to a 
choice. 

But no person constitutionally ineligible to the office 
of President, shall be eligible to that of Vice- 
President of the United States. 



By the Constitution, as originally adopted, each of the 
" electors " was required to vote for two persons, without 



244 ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTION. 

designating which of them it was intended should be 
President or which to be vice-president; and the candi- 
date receiving the largest number of votes, being a major- 
ity of the whole number, was to be President, and the 
next highest, vice-president. 

In the presidential election of 1800, Thomas Jefferson 
and Aaron Burr were the candidates of the republican 
party, and John Adams and C. C. Pinckney of the fed- 
eral party. Jefferson and Burr received seventy-three 
votes each, and Mr. Adams sixty-five. No person had 
received the highest number of votes, and consequently 
the election devolved on the House of Representatives. 
Although there was not the slightest doubt as to which 
of the candidates was the actual choice of the people, 
when the House of Representatives proceeded to the 
election, eight States voted for Jefferson, six for Burr, and 
two were divided, and it was not until the thirty-fifth bal- 
lot that a choice was effected. This bold attempt by a 
party in the House of Representatives, to counteract and 
resist the clearly expressed will of the people, led to the 
adoption of this amendment. 

Note. — The time foi" the meeting of the electors is the first Wednes- 
day in December — and the time for counting the votes is the second 
"Wednesday in February. 1 Stat. 239. 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 245 



CLOSING PROCEEDINGS 

OF THE CONVENTION AND OF THE CONGRESS. 

In Convention, Monday, September 17, 1787. — Present : 
The States of New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Con- 
necticut, Mr. Hamilton from New York, New Jersey, 
Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North 
Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. 

Resolved, That the preceding Constitution be laid 
before the United States in Congress assembled, and that 
it is the opinion of this Convention that it should after- 
wards be submitted to a Convention of delegates, chosen 
in each State by the people thereof, under the recom- 
mendation of its legislature, for their assent and ratifica- 
tion ; and that each Convention, assenting to and ratify- 
ing the same, should give notice thereof, to the United 
States in Congress assembled. 

Resolved, That it is the opinion of this Convention, that 
as soon as the Conventions of nine States shall have 
ratified this Constitution, the United States in Congress 
assembled should fix a day on which electors should be 
appointed by the States which shall have ratified the 
same, and a day on which the electors should assemble to 
vote for the President, and the time and place for com- 
mencing proceedings under this Constitution. That after 
such publication the electors should be appointed, and the 
senators and representatives elected ; that the electors 
should meet on the day fixed for the election of the 
President, and should transmit their votes certified, signed, 
sealed, and directed, as the Constitution requires, to the 

21* 



246 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

Secretary of the United States in Congress assembled; 
that the senators and representatives should convene at 
the time and place assigned; that the senators should 
appoint a president of the Senate, for the scJle purpose of 
receiving, opening, and counting the votes for President ; 
and that, after he shall be chosen, the Congress, together 
with the President, should without delay, proceed to 
execute this Constitution. 

By the unanimous order of the Convention. 

George Washington, President. 

William Jackson, Secretary. 

In Convention, September 17, 1787. — Sir : We have 
now the honor to submit to the consideration of the 
United States in Congress assembled, that Constitution 
which has appeared to us the most advisable. 

The friends of our country have long seen and desired 
that the power of making war, peace, and treaties, that of 
levying money and regulating commerce, and the corre- 
spondent executive and judicial authorities, should be fully 
and effectually vested in the general government of the 
Union ; but the impropriety of delegating such extensive 
trust to one body of men is evident : hence results the 
necessity of a different organization. 

It is obviously impracticable, in the federal government 
of these States, to secure all rights of independent sover- 
eignty to each, and yet provide for the interest and safety 
of all. Individuals entering into society must give up a 
share of liberty to preserve the rest. The magnitude of 
the sacrifice must depend as well on situation and circum- 
stance as on the object to be obtained. It is at all times 
difficult to draw with precision the line between those 
rights which must be surrendered and those which may 
be reserved ; and on the present occasion this difficulty 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 247 

was increased by a difference among the several States as 
to their situation, extent, habits, and particular interests. 

In all our deliberations on this subject, we kept steadily 
in our view that which appears to us the greatest in- 
terest of every true American — the consolidation of our 
Union — in which is involved our prosperity, felicity, 
safety, perhaps our national existence. This important 
consideration, seriously and deeply impressed on our 
minds, led each State in the Convention to be less rigid 
on points of inferior magnitude than might have been 
otherwise expected ; and thus the Constitution which we 
now present is the result of a spirit of amity, and of that 
mutual deference and concession which the peculiarity of 
our political situation rendered indispensable. 

That it wiU meet the fuU and entire approbation of 
every State, is not, perhaps, to be expected ; but each will 
doubtless consider that, had her interest been alone con- 
sulted, the consequences might have been particularly 
disagreeable or injurious to others ; that it is liable to as 
few exceptions as could reasonably have been expected, 
we hope and believe ; that it may promote the lasting 
welfare of that country so dear to us aU, and secure her 
freedom and happiness, is our most ardent wish. 

With great respect, we have the honor to be, sir, your 
excellency's most obedient humble servants. 

By unanimous order of the Convention. 

George Washington, President. 

His Excellency the President of Congress. 

United States in Congress Assembled. 
Friday^ September 28, 1787. — Present: New Hamp- 
shire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, 
Pennsylvania, Delaware, Virginia, North Carolina, South 
Carolina, and Georgia, and from Maryland, Mr. Ross. 



248 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

Congress having received the report of the Convention 
lately assembled in Philadelphia, — 

Resolved, unanimously, That the said report, with the 
resolutions and letter accompanying the same, be trans- 
mitted to the several legislatures, in order to be submitted 
to a convention of delegates chosen in each State by the 
people thereof, in conformity to the resolves of the Con- 
vention made and provided in that case. 

The United States in Congress Assembled. 

Saturday, September 13, 1788. — Congress assembled. 
Present : New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, 
New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, North 
Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia; and from Rhode 
Island, Mr. Arnold, and from Delaware, Mr. Kearny. 

On the question to agree to the proposition which was 
yesterday postponed by the State of Delaware, the yeas 
and nays being required by Mr. Gilman — 

New Hampshire ....... Mr. Gilman, ay > 

Wingate, ^Jy 

Massachusetts Mr. Dana, ay 7 

Thatcher, ay j ^ 

Connecticut Mr. Huntington, ay ) 

Wads worth, ay \ ^ 

Neio York Mr. Hamilton, ay > 

Gansevoort, ay j ^ 

New Jersey Mr. Clarke, ay \ 

Dayton, ay J ^^' 

Pennsylvania Mr. Irwine, ayT 

Meredith, ay I 

Armstrong, ay | ^ 

Kead, ay J 

Virginia Mr. Griffin, ay] 

Madison, ay I 

Carrington, ay [ ^ 

Lee, ay J 

South Carolina Mr. Parker, ay 7 

Tucker, ay \ ^^ 

Georgia Mr. Few, ay 7 

Baldwin, ay|^5^ 



ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 249 

So it was resolved in the affirmative, as follows : — 
Whereas the Convention assembled in Philadelphia, 
pursuant to the resolution of Congress of the 21st of 
February, 1787, did, on the 17th of September in the 
same year, report to the United States in Congress 
assembled a Constitution for the people of the United 
States; whereupon Congress, on the 28th of the same 
September, did resolve, unanimously, " That the said 
report, with the resolutions and letter accompanying the 
same, be transmitted to the several legislatures, in order 
to be submitted to a Convention of delegates, chosen in 
each State by the people thereof, in conformity to the 
resolves of the Convention made and provided in that 
case : " And whereas the Constitution so reported by the 
Convention, and by Congress transmitted to the several 
legislatures, has been ratified in the manner therein de- 
clared to be sufficient for the establishment of the same, 
and such ratifications, duly authenticated, have been 
received by Congress, and are filed in the office of the 
Secretary ; therefore — 

Resolved, That the first Wednesday in January next be 
the day for appointing electors in the several States, 
which, before the said day, shall have ratified the said 
Constitution ; that the first Wednesday in February next 
be the day for the electors to assemble in their respective 
States, and vote for a President ; and that the first 
Wednesday in March next be the time, and the present 
seat of Congress (New York) the place, for commencing 
the proceedings under the said Constitution. 



DOCUMENTS 



CONNECTED WITH THE 



PROCEEDmGS OF THE FEDERAL CONVENTION. 



[taken FKOM THE MADISON PAPERS.] 



1. Letter of Mr. Madison to Mr. Eandolph, suggesting his views of a 

Federal Constitution. 

2. Mr. Randolph's Plan, contained in his resolutions submitted to the Fed- 

eral Convention, on the opening of its proceedings, 29th May, 1787. 

3. Mr. Patterson's Plan, for amending the Articles of Confederation, of- 

fered as a substitute for Mr. Randolph's resolutions, 

4. Mr. Pinckney's Plan of a Pederal Government, submitted to the Fed- 

eral Convention, May 29, 1787. 

5. General Hamilton's Plan — read as the conclusion of his speech, but not 

offered to the Convention. 

6. General Eesolutions ; agreed to by the Convention and referred to the 

Committee on Detail, on the 26th July. 

7. Draft of the Constitution, reported by the Committee on Detail, 

Aug. 6, 1798. 

8. Extracts from the Debates on the Several General Proposi- 

tions. 

(251) 



252 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 



LETTER 

Of James Madison to Edmund Randolph, suggesting his 
Views of a Federal Constitution. 

New Yoek, April 8, 1787. 

Dear Sir, — .... I am glad to find that you ai'e turning 
your thoughts towards the business of May next. My despair 
of your finding the necessary leisure, as signified in one of your 
letters, with the probability that some leading propositions, at least, 
would be expected from Vii'ginia, had engaged me in a closer at- 
tention to the subject than I should otherwise have given, I will 
just hint the ideas that have occurred, leaving explanations for an 
interview. 

I think with you, that it will be well to retain as much as possi- 
ble of the old confederation, though I doubt whether it may not 
be best to work the valuable articles into the new system, instead 
of engrafting the latter on the former. I am also perfectly of your 
opinion, that, in framing a system, no material sacrifices ought to 
be made to local or temporary prejudices. An explanatory ad- 
dress must, of necessity, accompany the result of the Convention on. 
^ the main object. 

I am not sure that it will be practicable to joresent the several 
parts of the, reform in so detached a manner to the States, as that a 
partial adoption will be binding. Particular States may view 
different articles as conditions of each other, and would only ratify 
them as such. Others might ratify them as independent proposi- 
tions. The consequence would be that the ratifications of both 
would go for nothing. I have not, however, examined this point 
thoroughly. In truth, my ideas of a reform strike so deeply at the 
old confederation, and lead to sucl> a systematic change, that they 
scarcely admit of the expedient. 

I hold it as a fundamental point, that an individual independence 



MR. MADISON'S LETTER. 253 

of the States is utterly irreconcilable with the idea of an aggregate 
sovereignty. I think, at the same time, that a consolidation of the 
States into a simjjle republic is not less unattainable than it would 
be inexpedient. Let it be tried, then, whether any middle ground 
can be taken, which will, at once support a due supremacy of the 
national authority, and leave in force the local authorities, so far as 
they can be subordinately useful. 

The first step to be taken is, I think, a change in the principle 
of representation. According to the present form of the Union, 
an equality of suffrage, if not just towards the larger members of it, 
is at least safe to them, as the liberty they exercise of rejecting or 
executing the acts of Congi'ess, is uncontrollable by the nominal 
sovereignty of Congress. Under a system which would operate 
without the intervention of the States, the case would be materially 
altered. A vote from Delaware would have the same effect as one 
from Massachusetts or Virginia. 

Let the national government be armed with a positive and 
complete authority in all cases where uniform measures are nec- 
essary, as in trade, &c. Let it also retain the powers which it 
now possesses. 

Let it have a negative, in all cases whatsoevei', on the legis- 
lative acts of the States, as the king of Great Britain heretofore 
had. This I conceive to be essential, and the least possible 
abridgment of the State sovereignties. Without such a defensive 
power, every positive power that can be given on paper will be 
unavailing. It will also give internal stability to the States. 
There has been no moment since the peace at Avhich the federal 
assent would have been given to paper-money, &c. 

Let this national supremacy be extended also to the judiciary 
department. If the judges in the last resort depend on the States, 
and are bound by their oaths to them and not to the Union, the 
intention of the law and the interests of the nation may be defeated 
by the obsequiousness of the tribunals to the policy or prejudices 
of the States. It seems at least essential that an appeal should 
lie to some national tribunals in all cases which concern foreigners, 
or inhabitants of other States. The admiralty jurisdiction may be 
fully submitted to the national government. 

22 



254 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

A government formed of such extensive powers ought to be 
well organized. The legislative department may be divided into 

two branches. One of them to be chosen every years by the 

legislatui-e or the people at large ; the other to consist of a more 
select number, holding their appointments for a longer term and 
going out in rotation. Perhaps tlae negative on the State laws 
may be most conveniently lodged in this branch. A council of 
revision may be supei'added, including the great ministerial 
officers. 

A national executive will also be necessary. I have scarcely 
ventured to form my own opinion yet, either of the manner in 
which it ought to be constituted, or of authorities with which it 
ought to be clothed. 

An article ought to be inserted expressly guaranteeing the 
tranquillity of the States against internal as well as external 
dangers. 

To give the new system its proper energy, it will be desirable 
to have it ratified by the authority of the people, and not merely 
by that of the legislature. I am afraid you will think this project, 
if not extravagant, absolutely unattainable and unworthy of being 
attempted. Conceiving it myself to go no further than is essential, 
the objections drawn from this source are to be laid aside. I 
flatter myself, however, that they may be less formidable on trial 
than in contemplation. The change in the principle of represen- 
tation will be relished by a majority of the States, and those too of 
most influence. The northern States will be reconciled to it by 
the actual superiority of their populousness ; the southern, by 
their expected superiority on this point. This principle estab- 
lished, the repugnance of the large States to part with power will 
in a great degree subside, and the smaller Stales must ultimately 
yield to the predominant will. It is also already seen by many, 
and must by degrees be seen by all, that, unless the Union be 
organized efficiently on republican principles, innovations of a 
much more objectionable form may be obtruded, or in the most 
favorable event, the partition of the empire, into rival and hostile 
confederacies will ensue. 



MR. eandolph's plan. 255 



MR. RANDOLPH'S PLAN. 

Resolutions submitted to the Constitutional Conven- 
tion ON THE 29th May, 1787. 

1. Resolved, That the Articles of Confederation ought to be so 
corrected and enlarged as to accomplish the objects proposed by 
their institution, namely, " common defence, security of liberty, and 
general welfare." * 

2. Resolved, therefore, that the right of suffrage in the national 
legislature, ought to be proportioned to the quotas of contribution 
or to the number of free inhabitants, as the one or the other rule 
may seem best in different cases. 

3. Resolved, That the national legislature ought to consist of two 
bi'anches. 

4. Resolved, That the members of the first branch of the na- 
tional legislature, ought to be elected by the people of the several 

States every for the term of ; to be of the age of 

years, at least ; to receive liberal stipends by Avhich they 

may be compensated for the devotion of their time to the public 
service ; to be ineligible to any office established by a particular 
State, or under the authority of the United States, except those 
peculiarly belonging to the functions of the first branch, during the 

term of service and for the space of after its expiration ; to 

be incapable of reelection for the space of after the expira- 
tion of their term of service, and to be subject to recall. 



* Subsequently moclified by him so as to read, — Resolved, That a national 
government ought to be established, consisting of a supreme legislative, exec- 
utive, and judiciary. 



256 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

5. Resolved, That the members of the second branch of the na- 
tional legislature ought to be elected by those of the first, out of a 
proper number of persons nominated by the individual legislatures, 

to be of the age of years, at least ; to hold their offices for a 

term sufficient to insure their independency ; to receive liberal sti- 
pends by which they may be compensated for the devotion of their 
time to the public service ; and to be ineligible to any office estab- 
lished by a particular State, or under the authority of the United 
States, except those peculiarly belonging to the functions of the 
second branch, during the term of service ; and for the space of 
after the expiration thereof. 

6. Resolved, That each branch ought to possess the right of origi- 
nating acts ; that the national legislature ought to be empowered 
to enjoy the legislative rights vested in Congress by the Confeder- 
ation, and moreover, to legislate in all cases to which the separate 
States are incompetent, or in which the harmony of the United 
States may be interrupted by the exercise of individual legislation ; 
to negative all laws passed by the several States contravening, in 
the opinion of the national legislature, the Articles of Union, or any 
treaty subsisting under the authority of the Union ; and to call 
forth the force of the Union against any member of the Union fail- 
ing to fulfil its duty under the articles thereof. 

7. Resolved, That a National Executive be instituted ; to be 

chosen by the national legislature, for the term of ; to receive 

punctually, at stated times, a fixed compensation for the services 
rendered, in which no increase or diminution shall be made so as to 
affect the magistracy existing at the time of increase or diminution ; 
and to be ineligible a second time ; and that besides a general au- 
thority to execute the national laws, it ought to enjoy the execu- 
tive rights vested in Congress by the Confederation. 

8. Resolved, That the Executive and a convenient number of 
the national judiciary, ought to compose a council of revision, with 
authority to examine every act of the national legislature, before it 
shall operate, and every act of a particular legislature, before a 
negative thereon shall be final ; and that the dissent of said council 
shall amount to a rejection, unless the act of the national legisla- 



ME. RANDOLPH'S PLAN. 257 

ture be again passed, or of a particular legislature be again nega- 
tived by of the members of each branch. 

9. Resolved, That a national judiciary be established ; to consist 
of one or more supreme tribunals, and of inferior tribunals, to be 
chosen by the national legislature ; to hold their offices during good 
behavior, and to receive punctually, at stated times, fixed compen- 
sation for their services, in which no increase or diminution shall 
be made, so as to affect the persons actually in office at the time of 
sucli increase or diminution. That the jurisdiction of the inferior 
tribunals shall be to hear and determine in the first instance, and 
of the supreme tribunal to hear and determine in ihe dernier resort, 
all piracies and felonies on the high seas ; captures from an enemy ; 
cases in which foreigners or citizens of other States, applying to such 
jurisdictions, may be interested; or which respect the collection of 
the national revenue ; impeachments of any national officers ; and 
questions which may involve the national peace and harmony. 

10. Resolved, That provision ought to be made for the admission 
of States lawfully arising within the limits of the United States, 
whether from a voluntary junction of government and territory or 
otherwise, with the consent, of a number of votes of the national 
legislature less than the whole. 

11. Resolved, That a republican government, and the territory 
of each State, except in the instance of a voluntary junction of gov- 
ei'nment and territory, ought to be guaranteed by the United States 
to each State. 

12. Resolved, That provision ought to be made for the continu- 
ance of Congress and their authorities and privileges, until a given 
day after the reform of the articles of Union shall be adopted, and 
for the completion of all their engagements. 

13. Resolved, That provision ought to be made for the amend- 
ment of the articles of Union whensoever it shall be necessary, and 
that the assent of the national legislature ought not to be required 
thereto. 

1 4. Resolved, That the legislative, executive, and judiciary 
powers, within the several States, ought to be bound by oath to 
support the articles of Union. 

22* 



258 ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTION. 

15. Resolved, That the amendments which shall be offered to the 
Confederation, by the Convention, ought, at a proper time or times, 
after the approbation of Congress, to be submitted to an assembly 
or assemblies of representatives, recommended by the several legis- 
latures, to be expressly chosen by the people to consider and decide 
thereon. 



MR. PATTERSON'S PLAN. 259 



MH. PATTERSON'S PLAN, 

For amending the Articles of Confederation ; offered 
AS A Substitute for Mr. Randolph's Resolutions. 

1. Resolved, That the Articles of Confederation ought to be so 
revised, corrected, and enlarged, as to render the Federal Constitu- 
tion adequate to the exigencies of government and the preservation 
of the Union. 

2. Resolved, That in addition to the powers vested in the United 
States, in Congress, by the present existing Articles of Confedera- 
tion, they be authorized to pass acts for raising a revenue, by levy- 
ing a duty or duties on all goods or merchandises of foreign growth 
or manufacture, imported into any port of the United States ; by 
stamps on paper, vellum, or parchment ; and by a postage on all 
letters or packages passing through the general post-office ; to be 
applied to such federal purposes as they shall deem proper and ex- 
pedient; to make rules and regulations for the collection thereof; 
and the same, from time to time to alter and amend in such man- 
ner as they shall think proper ; to pass acts for the regulation of 
trade and commerce, as well with foreign nations as with each 
other ; provided that all punishments, fines, forfeitures, and pen- 
alties, to be incurred for contravening such acts, rules, and regula- 
tions, shall be adjudged by the common law judiciaries of the State 
in which any offence, contrary to the true intent and meaning of 
such acts, rules, and regulations, shall have been committed and 
perpetrated, with liberty of commencing in the first instance all 
suits and prosecutions for that purpose in the superior common law 
judiciary in such State ; subject, nevertheless, for the correction of 
all errors, both in law and fact, in rendering judgment, to an ap- 
peal to the judiciary of the United States. 

3. Resolved, Tliat whenever requisitions shall be necessai'v. in- 



260 ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTION. 

stead of the rules for making requisitions mentioned in the Articles 
of Confederation, the United States, in Congress, be authorized to 
make such requisitions, in propoi'tion to the whole number of white 
and other free inhabitants, of every age, sex, and condition, includ- 
ing those bound to service for a term of years, and three fifths of 
all other persons not comprehended in the foregoing description, 
except Indians not paying taxes ; that if such requisitions be not 
complied with, in the time specified therein, to direct the collection 
thereof in the non-complying States, and for that purpose to devise 
and pass acts directing and authorizing the same ; provided that 
none of the powers hereby vested in the United States in Congress, 

shall be exercised without the consent of at least States ; and 

in that proportion if the number of confederated States shall here- 
after be increased or diminished. 

4. Resolved, That the United States in Congress be authorized 

to elect a federal executive, to consist of persons, to continue 

in office for the term of years ; to receive punctually, at stated 

times, a fixed compensation for their services, in which no increase 
or diminution shall be made so as to affect the persons composing 
the executive at the time of such increase or diminution; to be paid 
out of the federal treasury ; to be incapable of holding any other 

ofiice or appointment during their time of service, and for 

years thereafter ; to be ineligible a second time, and removable by 
Congress, on application by a majority of the executives of the 
several States; that the executive, besides their general authority 
to execute the federal acts, ought to appoint all federal officers, not 
otherwise provided for, and to direct all military operations, pro- 
vided that none of the persons composing the federal executive 
shall, on any occasion, take command of any troops, so as person- 
ally to conduct any military enterprise, as general or in any other 
capacity. 

5. Resolved, That a Federal Judiciary be established, to consist 
of a supreme tribunal, the judges of which to be appointed by the 
executive, and to hold their offices during good behavior, to receive 
punctually, at stated times, a fixed compensation for their services, 
in which no increase or diminution shall be made so as to affect the 
persons actually in office at the time of such increase or diminu- 



MR. PATTERSON'S PLAN. 261 

tion. That the judiciary so established shall have authority to 
hear and determine, in the first instance, on all impeachments of 
federal officers ; and by way of appeal, in the dernier resort, in all 
cases touching the rights of ambassadors ; in all cases of captures 
from an enemy ; in all cases of piracies and felonies on the high 
seas ; in all cases in which foreigners may be interested ; in the 
construction of any treaty or treaties, or which may arise on any 
of the acts for the regulation of trade, or the collection of the 
federal revenue ; that none of the judiciary shall, during the time 
they remain in office, be capable of receiving or holding any other 
office or appointment during the term of service or for there- 
after. 

6. Resolved, That all acts of the United States in Congress, 
made by virtue and in pursuance of the powers hereby, and by the 
Articles of Confederation, vested in them, and all treaties made 
and ratified under the authority of the United States, shall be the 
supreme law of the respective States, so far forth as those acts or 
treaties shall relate to the said States or their citizens ; and that 
the judiciary of the several States shall be bound thereby in their 
decisions, any thing in the respective laws of the individual States 
to the contrary notwithstanding ; and that if any State, or any 
body of men in any State, shall oppose or prevent the carrying 
into execution such acts or treaties, the federal executive shall 
be authorized to call forth the power of the confederated States, or 
so much thereof as may be necessary, to enforce and compel an 
obedience to such acts, or an observance of such treaties. 

7. Resolved, That provision be made for the admission of new 
States into the Union. 

8. Resolved, That the rule of naturalization ought to be the 
same in every State. 

9. Resolved, That a citizen of one State committing an offence 
in another State of the Union, shall be deemed guilty of the same 
offence, as if it had been committed by a citizen of a State in 
Avhich it was committed. 



262 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 



MR. CHARLES PINCKNEY'S PLAN OF A 
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT. 

Submitted to the Constitutional Convention, May 29, 1787. 

We, the people of New Hampshire, &c. [naming all the States] 
do ordain, declare, and establish the following Constitution for the 
government of ourselves and our posterity. 

Article I. The style of this government shall be The United 
States of America, and the government shall consist of supreme 
legislative, executive, and judicial powers. 

Art. II. The legislative power shall be vested in a Congress, 
to consist of two separate houses ; one to be called the House of 

Delegates, and the other the Senate, who shall meet on the • 

day of in every year. 

Art. III. The members of the House of Delegates shall be 

chosen every year by the people of the several States, and 

the qualification of the electors shall be the same as those of the 
electors of the several States for their legislatures. Each member 

shall have been a citizen of the United States for years ; 

and shall be of ■ years of age, and a resident of the State he 

is chosen for. Until a census of the people shall be taken in the 
manner hereinafter mentioned, the House of Delegates shall con- 
sist of members, to be chosen by the different States, in the 

following proportions : for New Hampshire ■ , &c. ; and the 

legislature shall hereafter regulate the number of delegates, by 
the number of inhabitants, according to the provisions hereinafter 

made, at the rate of one for every thousand. All money 

bills of every kind shall originate in the House of Delegates, and 
shall not be altered by the Senate. The House of Delegates shall 
exclusively possess the power of impeachment, and shall choose its 
own officers ; and vacancies therein shall be supplied by the execu- 



MR. pinckney's plan. 263 

tive authority of the State in the representation from which they 
shall happen. 

Art. IV. The Senate shall be elected and chosen by the House 
of Delegates ; which house immediately after their meeting, 

shall choose by ballot senators from among the citizens and 

residents of New Hampshire ; from among those of Massa- 
chusetts ; [and so on through the States, to be divided into 

three classes to go out in succession]. Each senator shall be of 

years of age, at least, and shall have been a citizen of the 

United States for four years before his election ; and shall be a res- 
ident of the State he is chosen from. The Senate shall choose its 
own officers. 

Art. v. Each State shall prescribe the time and manner of 
holding elections by the people for the House of Delegates ; and 
the House of Delegates shall be the judges of the elections, re- 
turns, and qualifications of its members. 

In each house a majority shall constitute a quorum to do busi- 
ness. Freedom of speech and debate in the legislature shall not 
be impeached, or questioned in any place out of it ; and the mem- 
bers of both houses shall, in all cases except for treason, felony, or 
breach of the peace, be free from arrest during their attendance on 
Congress, and in going to and returning from it. Both houses 
shall keep journals of their proceedings, and publish them, except 
on secret occasions ; and the yeas and nays may be entered there- 
on, at the desire of of the members present. Neither house 

without the consent of the other, shall adjourn for more than 

days, nor to any place but where they are sitting. 

The members of each house shall not be eligible or capable of 
holding any office under the Union, during the time for which they 
have been respectively elected, nor the members of the Senate for 
one year after. The members of each house shall be paid for 
their services by the States which they represent. Every bill 
which shall have passed the legislature, shall be presented to the 
President of the United States for his revision ; if he approves it, 
he shall sign it ; but if he does not approve it, he shall return it, 
with his objections to the house it originated in ; which house, if 
two thirds of the members present, notwithstanding the President's 



264 ANALYSIS OE THE CONSTITUTION. 

objections, agree to pass it, shall send it to the other house, with 
the President's objections ; where, if two thirds of the members 
also agree to pass it, the same shall become a law ; and all bills 

sent to the President and not returned by him within days, 

shall be laws, unless the legislature by adjournment, prevent their- 
return, in which case they shall not be laws. 

Akt. VI. The legislature of the United States shall have the 
power to lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts, and excises ; 

To regulate commerce with all nations and among the several 
States ; 

To borrow money and emit bills of credit ; 

To establish post-offices ; 

To raise armies; — to build and equip fleets; 

To pass laws for arming, organizing, and disciplining the militia 
of the United States ; 

To subdue a rebellion in any State, on application of its legis- 
lature ; 

To coin money, and regulate the value of all coins ; and fix the 
standard of weights and measures ; 

To provide such dock-yards and arsenals, and erect such fortifi- 
cations as may be necessary for the United States ; and to exercise 
exclusive jurisdiction therein ; 

To appoint a treasurer by ballot ; 

To constitute tribunals inferior to the Supreme Court ; 

To establish post and military roads ; 

To establish and provide for a National University at the seat of 
the government of the United States ; 

To establish uniform rules of naturalization ; 

To provide for the establishment of a seat of government for the 

United States not exceeding miles square, in which they shall 

exercise exclusive jurisdiction ; 

To make rules concerning captures from an enemy ; 

To declare the law and punishment of piracies, and felonies at 
sea, and of counterfeiting coin, and of all offences against the laws 
of nations ; 

To call forth the aid of the militia to execute the laws of the 
Union, enforce treaties, suppress insurrections, and repel invasions ; 



MR. pinckney's plan. 265 

And to make all laws for carrying the foregoing powers into 
execution. 

The legislature of the United States shall have the power to 
declare the punishment of treason, which shall consist only in levy- 
ing war against the United States or any of them, or adhering to 
their enemies. No person shall be convicted of treason but by the 
testimony of two witnesses. 

The proportion of direct taxes shall be regulated by the whole 
number of inhabitants of every description ; which number shall, 

within years after the first meeting of the legislature, and 

within the term of every year after, be taken in the manner 

to be prescribed by the legislature. 

No tax shall be levied on articles exported from the States ; nor 
capitation tax, but in proportion to the census before directed. 

All laws regulating commerce shall require the assent of two 
thirds of the members present in each house. The United States 
shall not grant any title of nobility. The legislature of the Uni- 
ted States shall pass no law on the subject of religion ; nor touch- 
ing or abridging the liberty of the press ; nor shall the privilege 
of the writ of habeas corpus ever be suspended, except in case of 
rebellion or invasion. 

Ail acts made by the legislature of the United States, pursuant 
to the Constitution, and all treaties made under the authority of 
the United States, shall be the supreme law of the land, and all 
judges shall be bound to consider them as such in their decisions. 

Art. VII. The Senate shall have the sole and exclusive power 
to declare war ; and to make treaties ; and to appoint ambassa- 
dors and other ministers to foreign nations, and judges of the 
Supreme Court. 

They shall have exclusive power to regulate the manner of de- 
ciding all disputes and controversies now existing, or which may 
arise between the States, respecting jurisdiction or territory. 

Art. VIII. The executive power of the United States shall be 
vested in a President of the United States of America, which shall 
be his style, and his title shall be His Excellency. He shall be 

elected for years, and shall be reeligible. 

23 



266 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

He shall from time to time give information to the legislature, 
of the state of the Union, and recommend to their consideration 
the measures he may think necessary. He shall take care that 
the laws of the United States be duly executed. He shall com- 
mission all the officers of the United States ; and except as to am- 
bassadors, other ministers, and judges of the Supreme Court, he 
shall nominate, and with the consent of the Senate, appoint all 
other officers of the United States. He shall receive public minis- 
ters from foreign nations ; and may correspond with the executive^' 
of the different States. He shall have power to grant pardons an ' 
reprieves, except in impeachments. He shall be Commander-in- 
Chief of the army and navy of the United States, and of the mili- 
tia of the several States ; and shall receive a compensation which 
shall not be increased or diminished during his continuance in 
Dffice. At entering on the duties of his office, he shall take an 
oath faithfully to execute the duties of a President of the United 
fStates. He shall be removed from his office on impeachment by 
(he House of Delegates, and conviction in the Supreme Court of 
treason, bribery, or corruption. In the case of his removal, death, 
resignation, or disability, the president of the Senate shall exei-cise 
the duties of his office until another President be chosen. And in 
case of the president of the Senate, the speaker of the House of 
Delegates shall do so. 

Art. IX. The legislature of the United States shall have the 
power, and it shall be their duty, to establish courts of law^, equity, 
and admiralty, as shall be necessary. 

The judges of the courts shall hold their offices during good be- 
havior ; and receive compensation, which shall not be increased or 
diminished during their continuance in office. One of these courts 
shall be termed the Supreme Court ; whose jurisdiction shall ex- 
tend to all cases arising under the laws of the United States, or 
affecting ambassadors, other public ministers, and consuls ; to the 
trial of impeachment of officers of the United States ; to all cases 
of admiralty and maritime jurisdiction. In cases of impeachment 
affecting ambassadors, and other public ministers, this jurisdiction 
shall be original ; in all other cases appellate. 



MR. pinckney's plan. 267 

All criminal offences, except in cases of impeachment, shall be 
tried in the State where they shall be committed. The trials shall 
be open and pubUc, and shall be by jury. 

Art. X. Immediately after the first census of the people of the 
United States, the House of Delegates shall apportion the Senate 
by electing for each State, out of the citizens resident therein, one 

Senator for every members each State shall have in the 

House of Delegates. Each State shall be entitled to at least one 
member of the Senate. 

Art. XI. No State shall grant letters of marque and reprisal, 
or enter into treaty or alliance, or confederation ; nor grant any 
title of nobility ; nor without the consent of the legislature of the 
United States, lay any imposts on imports ; nor keep troops or 
ships of war in time of peace ; nor enter into compacts with other 
States or foreign powers ; nor emit bills of credit ; nor make any 
thing but gold and silver or copper a tender in payment of debts ; 
nor engage in war, except for self-defence when actually invaded, 
or the danger of invasion be so great as not to admit of a delay 
until the government of the United States can be informed thereof. 
And to render these prohibitions effectual, the legislature of the 
United States shall have the power to revise the laws of the sev- 
eral States, that may be supposed to infringe the povvers exclu- 
sively delegated by this Constitution to Congress, and to negative 
and annul such as do. 

Art. XII. The citizens of each State shall be entitled to all 
privileges and immunities of citizens in the several States. Every 
person charged with crimes in any State, fleeing from justice to 
another, shall, on demand of the executive of the State from 
which he fled, be delivered up and removed to the State having 
jurisdiction of the offence. 

Art. XI II. Full faith shall be given, in each State, to the acts 
of the legislature, and to the records and judicial proceedings of 
the courts and magistrates of every State. 

Art. XIV. The legislature shall have power to admit new 
States into the Union, on the same terms with the original States 
provided two thirds of the members present in both Houses agree. 



268 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

Art. XV. On the application of the legislature of a State, the 
United States shall protect it against domestic insurrection. 

Art. XVI. If two thirds of the legislatures of the States apply 
for the same, the legislature of the United States shall call a con- 
vention for the purpose of amending the Constitution ; or should 
Congress, with the consent of two thirds of each House, propose to 
the States amendments to the same, the agreement of two thirds of 
the legislatures of the States shall be sufficient to make the said 
amendments parts of the Constitution. 

The ratification of the conventions of States shall be 

sufficient for organizing this Constitution. 



GENERAL HAMILTON'S PLAN, 269 



GENERAL HAMILTON'S PLAN. 

Art. I. The supreme legislative power of the United States 
of America to be vested in two different bodies of men ; the one to 
be called the Assembly, the other the Senate ; who together shall 
form the legislature of the United States, with power to pass all 
laws whatsoever, subject to the negative hereafter mentioned. 

Art. IL The Assembly to consist of persons elected by the 
people to serve for three years. 

Art. III. The Senate to consist of persons elected to serve 
during good behavior ; their election to be made by electors chosen 
for that purpose by the people. In order to this, the States to be 
divided into election districts. On the death, removal, or resigna- 
tion of any Senator, his place to be filled out of the district from 
which he came. 

Art. IV. The supreme executive authority of the United States 
to be vested in a govei-nor, to be elected to serve during good be- 
havior; the election to be made by electors chosen by the people, 
in the election districts aforesaid. The authorities and functions of 
the executive to be as follows : To have a negative on all laws 
about to be passed, and the execution of all laws passed ; to have 
the direction of war, when authorized or begun ; to have, with the 
advice and approbation of the Senate, the power of making all 
treaties ; to have the sole appointment of the heads or chief officers 
of the departments, of finance, war, and foreign affairs ; to have 
the nomination of all other officers (ambassadors to foreign nations 
included), subject to the approbation or rejection of the Senate ; 
to have the power of pardoning all offences, except treason, which 
he shall not pai'don, without the approbation of the Senate. 

Art. V. On the death, resignation, or removal of the governor, 
23* 



270 ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTION. 

his authorities to be exercised by the president of the Senate, till a 
successor be appointed. 

Art. VI. The Senate to have the sole power of declaring war ; 
the power of advising and approving all treaties ; the power of ap- 
proving or rejecting all appointments of officers, except the heads 
or chiefs of the departments of finance, war, and foreign affairs. 

Art. VII. The supreme judicial authority to be vested in 
judges, to hold their offices during good behavior, with adequate 
and permanent salaries. This court to have original jurisdiction 
in all causes of capture, and an appellate jurisdiction in all causes 
in which the revenues of the general government or the citizens of 
foreign nations, are concerned. 

Art. VIII. The legislature of the United States to have power 
to institute courts in each State for the determination of all matters 
of general concern. 

Art. IX. The governor, senators, and all officers of the United 
States, to be liable to impeachment for mal-,. and corrupt conduct ; 
and upon conviction, to be removed from office, and disqualified for 
holding any place of trust or pi-ofit ; all impeachments to be tried 

by a court to consist of the chief , or judge of the superior 

court of law, of each State, provided such judge shall hold his place 
during good behavior and have a permanent salary. 

Art. X. All laws of the particular States contrary to the Con- 
stitution or laws of the United States to be utterly void ; and the 
better to prevent such laws being passed, the governor or president 
of each State shall be appointed by the general government, and 
shall have a negative upon the laws about to be passed in the State 
of which he is the governor or president. 

Art. XI. No State to have any forces, land or naval, and the 
militia of all the States to be under the sole or exclusive direction 
of the United States, the officers o^ which to be appointed or com- 
missioned by them. 



GENERAL RESOLUTIONS. 271 



GENERAL RESOLUTIONS. 

After a session of two months, on the 26th of July, the Conven- 
tion referred the following resolutions to the committee of detail, 
with instructions to prepare and report a constitution in conformity 
with them. The Convention then adjourned to the 6ih of August, 
to afford the committee time to perform their duty. 

This committee was chosen by ballot, and consisted of Messrs. 
E.UTLEDGE, Ea-Ndolph, Gorham, Ellsworth, and Wilson. 

1. Resolved, That the government of the United States ought to 
consist of a supreme legislative, judiciary, and executive. 

2. Resolved, That the legislature consist of two branches. 

3. Resolved, That the members of the first branch of the legis- 
lature ought to be elected by the people of the several States for 
the term of two years ; to be paid out of the public treasury ; to 
receive an adequate compensation for their services ; to be of the 
age of twenty -five years at least ; to be ineligible to, and incapable 
of holding, any office under the authority of the United States 
(except those peculiarly belonging to the functions of the first 
branch), during the term of service of the first branch. 

4. Resolved, That the members of the second branch of the leg- 
islature of the United States ought to be chosen by the individual 
legislatures ; to be of the age of thirty years at least ; to hold their 
offices for six years, one third to go out biennially ; to receive a 
compensation for the devotion of their time to the public service ; 
to be ineligible to, and incapable of holding, any office under the 
authority of the United States (except those peculiarly belonging 
to the functions of the second branch), during the term for which 
they were elected, and for one year thereafter. 



272 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

5. Resolved, That each branch ought to possess the right of 
originating acts. 

6. Resolved, That the national legislature ought, to possess the 
legislative rights vested in Congress by the Confederation ; and 
moreover to legislate in all cases for the general interests of the 
Union, and also in those to which the States are separately incom- 
petent, or in which the harmony of the United States may be 
interrupted by the exercise of individual legislation. 

7. Resolved, That the legislative acts of the United States, 
made by virtue and in pursuance of the articles of Union, and aJl 
treaties made and ratified under the authority of the United States, 
shall be the supreme law of the respective States, as far as those 
acts or treaties shall relate to the said States, or their citizens or 
inhabitants ; and that the judiciaries of the several States shall be 
bound thereby in their decisions, any thing in the respective laws 
of the individual States notwithstanding. 

8. Resolved, That in the original formation of the legislature of 
the United States, the first branch thereof shall consist of sixty- 
five members ; of which number, 

New Hampshire shall send three, 

Massachusetts " " eight, 

Khode Island " " one, 

Connecticut " " five, 

New York " " six. 

New Jersey " " four, 

Pennsylvania " " eight, 

Delaware " " one, 

Maryland " " six, 

Virginia " " ten. 

North Carolina " " five. 

South Carolina " " five, 

Georgia " *' three. 

But as the present situation of the States may probably alter in 
the number of their inhabitants, the legislature of the United 
States shall be authorized, from time to time, to apportion the 
•- umber of representatives ; and in case any of the States shall 



GENERAL RESOLUTIONS. 273 

hereafter be divided, or enlarged by addition of territory, or any 
two or more States united, or any new States created within the 
limits of the United States, the legislature of the United States 
shall possess authority to regulate the number of representatives, 
in any of the foregoing cases, upon the principle of their number 
of inhabitants, according to the principles hereafter mentioned, 
namely, — Provided always, that the representation ought to be 
proportioned to direct taxation. And in order to ascertain the 
alteration in the direct taxation, which may be required from time 
to time, by the changes in the relative circumstances of the 
States, — 

9. Resolved, That a census be taken within six years from the 
first meeting of the legislature of the United States, and once 
within the term of every ten years afterwards, of all the inhab- 
itants of the United States, in the manner and according to the 
ratio recommended by Congress in their resolution of the 18th of 
April, 1783 ; and that the legislature of the United States shall 
proportion the direct taxation accordingly. 

10. Resolved, That all bills for raising or appropriating money, 
or for fixing the salaries of the officers of the government of the 
United States, shall originate in the first branch of the legislature 
of the United States, and shall not be altered or amended by the 
second branch ; and that no money shall be drawn from the public 
treasury, but in pursuance of appropriations to be originated in 
the first branch. 

11. Resolved, That in the second branch of, the legislature of 
the United States, each State shall have an equal vote. 

12. Resolved, That a national executive be instituted, to con 
sist of a single person ; to be chosen by the national legislature, 
for the term of seven years, to be ineligible a second time; with 
power to carry into execution the national laws ; to appoint to 
oiioes in cases not otherwise provided for ; to be removable on 
impeachment, and conviction of mal-practice or neglect of duty ; 
to receive a fixed compensation for the devotion of his time to the 
public service, to be paid out of the national treasury. 

13. Resolved, That the national executive shall have the right 



274 . ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

to negative any legislative act; which shall not be afterwards 
passed, unless by two third parts of each branch of the national 
legislature. 

14. Resolved^ That a national judiciary be established, to con- 
sist of one supreme tribunal, the judges of which shall be appointed 
by the second branch of the national legislature ; to hold their 
offices during good behavior; to receive punctually, at stated times, 
a fixed compensation for their services, in which no diminution 
shall be made so as to affect the persons actually in office at the 
time of such diminution. 

15. Resolved, That the national legislature be empowered to 
appoint inferior tribunals. 

16. Resolved, That the jurisdiction of the national judiciary 
shall extend to cases arising under laws passed by the general leg- 
islature ; and to such other questions as involve the national peace 
and harmony. 

17. Resolved, That provision ought to be made for the admis- 
sion of States lawfully arising within the limits of the United 
States, whether from a voluntary junction of government and ter- 
ritory, or otherwise, with the consent of a number of voices in the 
national legislature less than the whole. 

18. Resolved, That a republican form of government shall be 
guaranteed to each State ; and that each State shall be protected 
against foreign and domestic violence. 

19. Resolved, That provision ought to be made for the amend- 
ment of the articles of union, whenever it shall be deemed neces- 
sary. 

20. Resolved, That the legislative, executive, and judiciary 
powers, within the several States, and of the national government, 
ought to be bound, by oath, to support the articles of union. 

21. Resolved, That the amendments which shall be offered to 
the Confederation by the Convention ought, at proper time or 
times, after the approbation of Congress, to be submitted to an 
assembly or assemblies of representatives, recommended by the 
several legislatures, to be expressly chosen by the people to con- 
sider and decide thereon. 



GENER4L RESOLUTIONS. 275 

22. Resolved, That the representation in the second branch of 
the legislature of the United States shall consist of two members 
from each State, who shall vote per capita. 

23. Resolved, That it be an instruction to the committee, to 
■whom were referred the proceedings of the Convention for the 
establishment of a national government, to receive a clause or 
clauses, requiring certain qualifications of property and citizenship 
in the United States, for the executive, the judiciary, and the mem- 
bers of both branches of the legislature of the United States. 



276 ANALYSIS OP THE CONSTITUTION. 



DRAFT OF THE CONSTITUTION 

Reported by Mr. Rutledge, from the Committee on Detail, 
ON THE Gth of August, 1787, in conformity with the 
" General Resolutions," previously agreed to by the 
Convention. 

article I. 
The style of the government shall be, " The United States of 
America." 

article II. 
The government shall consist of a supreme legislative, execu- 
tive, and judicial powers. 

ARTICLE III. 

The legislative power shall be vested in a Congress, to consist of 
two separate and distinct bodies of men, a House of Representa- 
tives and a Senate ; each of which shall, in all cases, have a nega- 
tive on the other. The legislature shall meet on the first Mondaj 
in December, in every year. 

ARTICLE n\ 

Sect. 1. The members of the House of Representatives shall be 
chosen every second year, by the people of the several States com- 
prehended within the Union. The qualifications of the electors 
shall be the same from time to time, as those of the electors in the 
several States, of the most numerous branch of their own legisla- 
tures. 

Sect. 2. Every member of the House of Representatives shall 
b-: of th' age of twenty-five years at least; shall have been a citi- 
zen in the United States for at least three years before his election ; 



DRAFT OF THE CONSTITUTION. 277 

and shall be, at the time of his election, a resident of the State in 
which he shall be chosen. 

Sbct. 3. The House of Representatives shall, at its first forma- 
tion, and until the number of citizens and inhabitants shall be taken 
in the manner hereinafter described, consist of sixty-five members, 
of whom three shall be chosen in New Hampshire, eight in Mas- 
sachusetts, one in Rhode Island, five in Connecticut, six in New 
York, four in New Jersey, eight in Pennsylvania, one in Dela- 
ware, six in Maryland, ten in Virginia, five in North Carolina, five 
in South Carolina, and three in Georgia. 

Sect. 4. As the proportions of numbers in different States will 
alter from time to time ; as some of the States may hereafter be 
divided ; as others may be enlarged by addition of territory ; as 
two or more States may be united ; as new States will be erected 
within the limits of the United States, the legislature shall, in each 
of these cases, regulate the number of representatives by the num- 
ber of inhabitants, according to the provisions hereinafter made, at 
the rate of one for every forty thousand. 

Sect. 5. All bills for raising or appropriating money, and for 
fixing the salaries of officers of government, shall originate in the 
House of Representatives, and shall not be altered or amended by 
the Senate. No money shall be drawn from the public treasury, 
but in pursuance of appropriations that shall originate in the House 
of Representatives. 

Sect. 6. The House of Representatives shall have the sole 
power of impeachment ; it shall choose its speaker and other 
officers. 

Sect. 7. Vacancies in the House of Representatives shall be 
supplied by writs of election from the executive authority of the 
State, in the representation from which they shall happen. 

ARTICLE V. 

Sect. 1. The Senate of the United States shall be chosen by 
the legislatures of the several States. Each legislature shall choose 
two members. Vacancies may be supplied by the executive until 

24 



278 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

the next meeting of the legislature. Each member shall have one 
vote. 

Sect. 2. The Senators shall be chosen for six years ; but imme- 
diately after the first election, they shall be divided by lot into 
three classes, as nearly as may be, numbered one, two, and three. 
The seats of the members of the first class shall be vacated at the 
expiration of the second year ; of the second class at the expira- 
tion of the fourth year; of the third class at the expiration of the 
sixth year ; so that a third part of the members may be chosen 
every second year. 

Sect. 3. Every member of the Senate shall be of the age of 
thirty years at least ; shall have been a citizen in the United States 
for at least four years before his election ; and shall be, at the time 
of his election, a resident of the State for which he shall be chosen. 

Sect. 4. The Senate shall choose its own president and other 
officers. 

article VI. 

Sect. 1. The times, and places, and manner of holding the elec- 
tions of the members of each house, shall be prescribed by the 
legislature of each State ; but their provisions concerning them, 
may, at any time, be altered by the legislature of the United 
States. 

Sect. 2. The legislature of the United States shall have au- 
thority to establish such uniform qualifications of the members of 
each house, with regard tc property, as to the said legislature shall 
seem expedient. 

Sect. 3. In each house, a majority of its members shall consti- 
tute a quorum to do business ; but a smaller number may adjourn 
from day to day. 

Sect. 4. Each house shall be the judge of the elections, returns 
and qualifications of its own members. 

Sect. 5. Freedom of speech and debate in the legislature shall 
not be impeached or questioned in any court or place out of tlie 
legislature ; and the members of each house shall, in all cases, 
except treason, felony, and breach of the peace, be privileged from 



DRAFT OF THE CONSTITUTION. 279 

arrest during their attendance at Congress, and in going to and re- 
turning from it. 

Sect. 6. Each house may determine the rules of its proceed- 
ings ; may punish its members for disorderly behavior; and may 
expel a member. 

Sect. 7. The House of Representatives and the Senate, when 
it shall be acting in a legislative capacity, shall keep a journal of 
their proceedings ; and shall, from time to time publish them ; 
and the yeas and nays of the members of each house on any ques- 
tion shall, at the desire of one fifth part of the members present, 
be entered on the journal. 

Sect. 8. Neither house, without the consent of the other, shall 
adjourn for more than three days, nor to any other place than that 
at which the two houses are sitting. But this regulation shall not 
extend to the Senate, when it shall exercise the powers mentioned 
in the article. 

Sect. 9. The members of each house shall be ineligible to, and 
incapable of holding, any office under the authority of the United 
States, during the time for which they shall respectively be elected ; 
and the members of the Senate shall be ineligible to, and incapable 
of holding any such office for one year afterwards. 

Sect. 10. The members of each house shall receive a compen- 
sation for their services, to be ascertained and paid by the State in 
which they shall be chosen. 

Sect. 11. The enacting style of the laws of the United States 
shall be, " Be it enacted, and it is hereby enacted, by the House of 
Representatives, and by the Senate of the United States, in Con- 
gress assembled." 

Sect. 12. Each house shall possess the right of originating bills, 
except in the cases before mentioned. 

Sect. 13. Every bill which shall have passed the House of 
Representatives and the Senate, shall, before it becomes a law, be 
presented to the President of the United States for his revision. 
If, upon such revision, he approve of it, he shall signify his appro- 
bation by signing it. But if, upon such revision, it shall appear to 
him improper for being passed into a law, he shall return it, to- 



280 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

gether with his objections against it. to that house in which it shall 
have originated ; who shall enter their objections at large on their 
journal, and proceed to reconsider the bill. But if, after such re- 
consideration, two thirds of the house shall, notwithstanding the 
objections of the President, agree to pass it, it shall, together with 
his objections, be sent to the other house, by which it shall likewise 
be reconsidered ; and if approved by two thirds of the other house, 
it shall become a law. But in all such cases, the votes of both houses 
shall be determined by yeas and nays ; and the names of the per- 
sons voting for or against the bill, shall be entered on the journal 
of each house respectively. If any bill shall not be returned 
by the President within seven days after it shall have been pre- 
sented to him, it shall be a law, unless the legislature, by their ad- 
journment, prevent its return, in which case it shall not be a law. 

ARTICLE VII. 

Sect. 1. The legislature of the United States shall have the 
power to lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts and excises; 

To regulate commerce with foreign nations, and among the sev- 
eral States ; 

To establish an uniform rule of naturalization throughout the 
United States ; 

To coin money ; to regulate the value of foreign coin ; 

To fix the standard of weights and measures ; 

To establish post-offices ; 

To borrow money, and emit bills on the credit of the United 
States ; 

To appoint a treasurer by ballot ; 

To constitute tribunals, inferior to the Supreme Court ; 

To make rules concerning captures on land and water ; 

To declare the law and punishment of piracies and felonies com- 
mitted on the high seas, and the punishment of counterfeiting the 
coin of the United States, and of offences against the law of 
nations ; 

To subdue a rebellion in any State, on the application of its 
legislature ; 



DUAFT OP THE CONSTITUTION. 281 

To make war ; 

To raise armies ; 

To build and equip fleets ; 

To call forth the aid of the militia, in order to execute the laws 
of the Union, enforce treaties, suppress insurrections, and repel in- 
vasions ; 

And to make all laws that shall be necessary and proper for 
carrying into execution the foregoing powers, and all other powers 
vested by this Constitution in the government of the United States, 
or in any department or office thereof. 

Skct. 2. Treason against the United States shall only consist in 
levying war against the United States or any of them ; and in ad- 
hering to the enemies of the United States, or any of them. The 
legislature of the United States shall have power to declare the 
punishment of treason. No person shall be convicted of treason, 
unless on the testimony of two witnesses. .No attainder of treason 
shall work corruption of blood nor forfeiture, except during the 
life of the person attainted. 

Sect. 3. The proportions of direct taxation shall be regulated 
by the whole number of white and other free citizens and inhabi- 
tants of every age, sex, and condition, including those bound to ser- 
vice for a term of years, and three fifths of all other persons not 
comprehended in the foregoing description (except Indians not 
paying taxes) ; which number shall, within six years after the first 
meeting of the legislature, and within the term of every ten years 
afterwards, be taken in such manner as the legislature shall dii'ect. 

Sect. 4. No tax or duty shall be laid by the legislature on arti- 
cles exported from any State ; nor on the migi-ation or importa- 
tion of such persons as the several States shall think proper to 
admit ; nor shall such migration or importation be prohibited. 

Sect. 5. No capitation tax shall be laid, unless in proportion to 
the census herein before directed to be taken. 

Sect. 6. No navigation act shall be passed, without the consent 
of two thirds of the members present in each House. 

Sect. 7. The United States shall not grant any title of nobility. 
24* 



282 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION'. 



ARTICLE VIII. 

The acts of the legislature of the United States made in pursu- 
ance of this Constitution, and all treaties made under the authority 
of the United States shall he the supreme law of the several States, 
and of their citizens and inhabitants ; and the judges in the several 
States shall be bound thereby in their decisions, any thing in the 
constitutions or laws of the several States to the contrary notwith- 
standing. 

ARTICLE IX. 

Sect. 1. The Senate of the United States shall have power to 
make treaties, and to appoint ambassadors and judges of the Su- 
preme Court. 

Sect. 2. In all disputes and controversies now subsisting, or 
that may hereafter subsist between two or more States, respecting 
jurisdiction or territory, the Senate shall possess the following 
powers : — Whenever the legislature or the executive authority, or 
lawful agent of any State, in controversy with another, shall by 
memorial to the Senate, state the matter in question, and apply for 
a hearing, notice of such memorial or application shall be given by 
order of the Senate, to the legislatui'e, or executive authority of the 
other State in controversy. The Senate shall also assign a day 
for the appearance of the parties, by their agents, before that 
house. The agents shall be directed to appoint, by joint consent, 
commissioners or judges to constitute a court for hearing and deter- 
mining the matter in question. But if the agents cannot agree, 
the Senate shall name three persons out of each of the several 
States ; and from the list of such persons, each party shall alter- 
nately strike out one, until the number shall be reduced to thirteen ; 
and from that number, not less than seven, nor more than nine 
names, as the Senate shall direct, shall, in their presence, be drawn 
out by lot ; and the persons whose names shall be so drawn, or any 
five of them, shall constitute commissioners or judges to hear and 
finally determine the controversy ; provided a majority of the 
judges wbo shall hear the cause agree in the determination. If 



DRAFT OF THE CONSTITUTION. 283 

either party shall neglect to attend at the day assigned, without 
showing sufficient reasons for not attending, or being present shall 
refuse to strike, the Senate shall proceed to nominate three persons 
out of each State, and the clerk of the Senate shall strike in behalf 
of the party absent or refusing. If any of the parties shall refuse 
to submit to the authority of such court, or shall not appear to 
prosecute or defend their claim or cause, the court shall neverthe- 
less proceed to pronounce judgment. The judgment shall be final 
and conclusive. The proceedings shall be transmitted to the pres- 
ident of the Senate, and shall be lodged among the public records 
for the security of the party concerned. Every commissioner shall, 
before he sit in judgment, take an oath, to be administered by one 
of the judges of the supreme or superior court of the State where 
the cause shall be tried, " well and truly to hear and determine 
the matter in question, according to the best of his judgment, with- 
out favor, affection, or hope of reward." 

Sect. 3. All controversies concerning land claimed under dif- 
ferent grants of two or more States, whose jurisdictions, as they 
respect such lands, shall have been adjusted or decided subse- 
quently to such grants, or any of them, shall, on application to the 
Senate, be finally determined, as near as may be, in the same man- 
ner as before prescribed for deciding controversies between dif- 
ferent States. 

ARTICLE X. 

Sect. 1. The executive power of the United States shall be 
vested in a single person. His style shall be, " The President of 
the United States of America," and his title shall be, " His Excel- 
lency." He shall be elected by ballot by the legislature. He 
shall hold his office during the term of seven years ; but shall not 
be elected a second time. 

Sect. 2. He shall, from time to time, give information to the 
legislature, of the state of the Union. He may recommend such 
measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient. He may 
convene them on extraordinary occasions. In case of disagree- 
ment between the two houses, with regard to the time of adjourn- 
ment, he may adjourn them to such time as he thinks proper. He 



284 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

shall take care that the laws of the United States be duly and 
faithfully executed. He shall commission all the officers of the 
United States ; and shall appoint officers in all cases not otherwise 
provided for by this Constitution. He shall receive ambassadors, 
and may correspond with the supreme executives of the several 
States. He shall have power to grant reprieves and pardons, but 
his pardon shall not be pleadable in bar of an impeachment. He 
shall be commander-in-chief of the army and navy of the United 
States, and of the militia of the several States. He shall, at stated 
times, receive for his services a compensation, which shall neither 
be increased nor diminished during his continuance in office. 
Before he shall enter on the duties of his department, he shall 

take the following oath or affirmation, " I solemnly swear (or 

affirm) that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the 
United States of America." He shall be removed from his office 
on impeachment by the House of Representatives, and conviction 
in the Supreme Court, of treason, bribery, or corruption. In case 
o^his removal, as aforesaid, death, resignation, or disability to dis- 
charge the powers and duties of his office, the president of the 
Senate shall exercise those powers and duties, until another Presi- 
dent of the United States be chosen, or until the disability of the 
President be removed. 



ARTICLE XI. 

Sect. 1. The judicial power of the United States shall be 
vested in one Supreme Court, and in such inferior courts as shall, 
when necessary, from time to time, be constituted by the legisla- 
ture of the United States. 

Sect. 2. The judges of the Supreme Court, and of the inferior 
courts, shall hold their offices during good behavior. They shall, 
at stated times, receive for their services a compensation, which 
shall not be diminished during their continuance in office. 

Sect. 3. The jurisdiction of the Supreme Court shall extend to 
all cases arising under laws passed by the legislature of the United 
States ; to all cases affecting ambassadors, other public ministers, 
and consuls ; to the trial of impeachments of officers of the United 



DRAFT OF THE CONSTITUTION. 285 

States ; to all cases of admiralty and maritime jurij^diction ; to 
controversies between two or more States (except such as shall 
regard territory or jurisdiction) ; between a State and citizens of 
another State ; between citizens of different States ; and between a 
State, or the citizens thereof, and foreign States, citizens or sub- 
jects. In cases of impeachment, cases affecting ambassadors, other 
public ministers and consuls, and those in which a State shall be a 
party, this jurisdiction shall be original. In all the other cases 
before mentioned, it shall be appellate, with such exceptions and 
under such regulations, as the legislature shall make. The legisla- 
ture may assign any part of the jurisdiction above mentioned 
(except the trial of the President of the United States), in the 
manner and under the limitations which it shall think proper, to 
such inferior courts as it shall constitute from time to time. 

Sect. 4. The trial of all criminal offences (except in cases of 
impeachment) shall be in the State where they shall be committed ; 
and shall be by jury. 

Sect. 5, Judgment, in cases of impeachment, shall not extend 
further than to removal from office, and disqualification to hold 
and enjoy any office of honor, trust, or profit under the United 
States. But the party convicted shall nevertheless be liable and 
subject to indictment, trial, judgment, and punishment according to 
law. 

ARTICLE XII. 

No State shall coin money ; nor grant letters of marque and 
reprisal ; nor enter into any treaty, alliance, or confederation ; nor 
grant any title of nobility. 

ARTICLE XIII. 

No State, without the consent of the legislature of the United 
States, shall emit bills of credit, or make any thing but specie a 
tender in payment of debts ; nor lay imposts or duties on imports; 
nor keep troops or ships of war in time of peace ; nor enter into 
any agreement or compact with another State, or with any foreign 
power ; nor engage in any war, unless it shall be actually invaded 
by enemies, or the danger of invasion be so imminent as not to 



286 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

admit of a delay until the legislature of the United States can be 
consulted. 

ARTICLE XIV. 

The citizens of each State shall be entitled to all privileges and 
immunities of citizens in the several States. 

ARTICLE XV. 

Any person charged with treason, felony, or high misdemeanor 
in any State, who shall flee from justice, and shall be found in any 
other State, shall, on demand of the executive power of the State 
from which he fled, be delivered up and removed to the State hav- 
ing jurisdiction of the offence. 

ARTICLE XVI. 

Full faith shall be given in each State, to the acts of the legis- 
latures, and to the records and judicial proceedings of the courts 
and magistrates of every other State. 

ARTICLE XVII. 

New States lawfully constituted and established within the 
limits of the United States, may be admitted, by the legislature, 
into this government ; but to such admission the consent of two 
thirds of the members present in each house shall be necessary. 
If a new State shall arise within the limits of any of the present 
States, the consent of the legislatures of such States shall be neces- 
sary to the admission. If the admission be consented to, the new 
States shall be admitted on the same terms with the original 
States. But the legislature may make conditions with the new 
States, concerning the public debt which shall be then subsisting. 

ARTICLE XVIII. 

The United States shall guarantee to each State a republican 
form of government ; and shall protect each State against foreign 
invasions, and, on the application of its legislature, against domes- 
tic violence. 



DRAPT OF THE CONSTITUTION. 287 



ARTICLE XIX. 

On the application of the legislatures of two thirds of the States 
in tlie Union, for an amendment to this Constitution, the legisla- 
ture of the United States shall call a convention for that purpose. 

ARTICLE XX. 

The members of the legislatures, and the executive and judicial 
officers of the United States and of the several States, shall be 
bound by oath to support this Constitution. 

ARTICLE XXI. 

The ratification of the conventions of States shall be suffi- 
cient for organizing this Constitution. 

ARTICLE XXII. 

This Constitution shall be laid before the United States in Con- 
gress assembled, for their approbation ; and it is the opinion of this 
Convention, that it should be afterwards submitted to a convention 
chosen in each State, under the recommendation of its legislature, 
in order to receive the ratification of such convention. 

ARTICLE XXIII. 

To introduce this government, it is the opinion of this Conven- 
tion, that each assenting convention should notify its assent and 
ratification to the United States in Congress assembled ; that Con- 
gress, after receiving the assent and ratification of the conventions 

of States, should appoint and publish a day^ as early as may 

be, and appoint a place for commencing proceedings under this 
Constitution ; and after such publication, the legislatures of the 
several States should elect members of the Senate and direct the 
election of members of the House of Representatives ; and that the 
members of the legislature should meet at the time and place, 
assigned by Congress, and should as soon as may be after their 
meeting, choose the President of the United Slates and proceed to 
execute this Constitution. 



288 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

This report was considered and debated in the Convention from 
the 6th of August until the 9th of September, during which it re- 
ceived a great variety of modifications and akerations. 

On the 9th of September it was referred as amended, to a com- 
mittee of style and revision, consisting of Messrs. Johnson of Con- 
necticut, Hamilton of New York, Morris of Pennsylvania, Madi- 
son of Virginia, and King of Massachusetts. 

This committee reported on the 14th September, and after a 
great variety of motions to amend, of which the record is very 
imperfect, their draft was adopted, with but slight modifications. 



EXTRACTS FROM THE DEBATE. 289 



EXTRACTS FROM THE DEBATE 

In the Federal Convention, on the respective Plans of 
Mr. Randolph and Mr. Patterson. 

The first resolution of each plan having been read, Mr. Lansing 
of New York, said : — " The plan of Mr. Patterson sustains the 
sovereignty of the respective States, that of Mr. Randolph de- 
stroys it. 

" The plan of Mr. Randolph, in short, absorbs all power, except 
what may be exercised in the little local matters of the States, 
which are not objects worthy of the supreme cognizance. He 
grounded his preference of Mr. Patterson's plan, chiefly on two 
objections to that of Mr. Randolph, — fii'st, want of power in the 
Convention to discuss and propose it ; secondly, the improbability 
of its being adopted. 

" He was decidedly of opinion that the power of the Convention 
was restrained to amendments of a Federal nature, and having for 
their basis the confederacy in being. The acts of Congress, the 
tenor of the acts of the States, the commissions produced by the 
several deputations, all proved this. And this limitation of the 
power to an amendment of the confederacy marked the opinion of 
the States, that it was unnecessary and improper to go further." 

Mr. Patterson said, he preferred his own plan, " because it 
accorded, — first, with the powers of the Convention; secondly, 
with the sentiments of the people. If the confederacy was radi- 
cally wrong, let us return to our States, and obtain larger powers, 

not assume them ourselves If we argue the matter on the 

supposition, that no confederacy, at present, exists, it cannot be de- 
nied, that all the States stand on the footing of equal sovereignty. 
All, therefore, must concur, before any can be bound. If a propor- 
tional representation be right, why do we not vote so here ? If we 
25 



290 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

argue on the fact that a federal compact actually exists, and con- 
sult the articles of it, we shall find an equal sovereignty to be the 
basis of it. He read the fifth article of the Confederation, giving 
each State a vote ; and the thirteenth, declaring that no alteration 
shall be made without unanimous consent. This is the nature of 
all treaties. What is unanimously done must be unanimously 
undone." 

" If the sovereignty of the States is to be maintained, the rep- 
resentatives must be drawn immediately from the States, not from 
the people ; and we have no power to vary the idea of equal sov- 
ereignty. Do the people at large complain of Congress ? No. What 
they wish is that Congress may have more power. If the power 
now pi'oposed be not enough, the people hereafter will make addi- 
tions to it. With proper powers, Congress will act with more en- 
ergy and wisdom than the proposed national legislature ; being 
few in number and more secreted and refined by the mode of elec- 
tion. The plan of Mr. Randolph will also be enormously expen- 
sive. Allowing Georgia and Delaware two representatives each 
in the popular branch, the aggregate number of that branch will 
be one hundred and eighty. Add to it half as many for the other 
branch, and you have two hundred and seventy members, coming 
once at least a year from the most distant as well as the most 
central parts of the republic. In the present deranged state of 
our finances, can so expensive a system be seriously thought of? " 

Mr. PiNCKNEY. — " The whole comes to this, as he conceived. 
Give New Jersey an equal vote, and she will dismiss her scruples 
and concur in the national system. He thought the convention 
authorized to go any length in recommending, which they found 
necessary to remedy the evils which produced this convention." 

Mr. Randolph " was not scrupulous with regai'd to power. 
When the salvation of the republic was at stake, it would be trea- 
son to our trust, not to propose what we found necessary. He 
painted in strong colors the imbecility of the existing confederacy, 
and the danger of delaying a substantial reform. In answer to the 
objection drawn from the sense of our constituents, as denoted by 
their acts relating to the convention and the objects of their delib- 



EXTRACTS FROM THE DEBATE. 291 

eration, he observed, as each State acted separately in the case, it 
would have been indecent for it, to have charged the existing con- 
stitution with all the vices which it might have perceived in it. 

There are reasons certainly of a peculiar nature, where 

the ordinary cautions must be dispensed with ; and this is certainly 
one of them. He would not, so far as depended on him, leave any 
thing that seemed necessary undone. The present moment is 
favorable, and is pi'obably the last that will offer. 

" The true question is whether we will adhere to the federal 
plan, or introduce the national plan. The insufficiency of the for- 
mer has been fully displayed by the trial already made. There 
are but two modes by which the ends of a Federal government can 
be attained ; the first by coercion, as proposed by Mr. Patterson's 
plan ; the second by real legislation, as proposed by the other plan. 
Coercion he pronounced to be impracticable, expensive, cruel to 
individuals. It tended also to habituate the instruments of it, to 
shed the blood, and riot in the spoils of their fellow-citizens and 
consequently trained them up for the service of ambition. 

" We must resort, therefore, to a national legislation over indi- 
viduals ; for which Congress are unfit. To vest such power in 
them would be blending the legislative with the executive, con- 
trary to the received maxim on this subject. If the union of these 
powers, heretofore in Congress has been safe, it has been owing to 
the general impotency of that body. Congress, moreover, are not 
elected by the people, but by the legislatures, who retain even a 
power to recall. They have therefore, no will of their own ; they 
are a mere diplomatic body, and are always obsequious to the views 
of the States, who are always encroaching on the authority of the 
United States. A provision for harmony among the States, as in 
trade, naturalization, &c. ; for crushing rebellion, whenever it may 
rear its crest, and for certain other general benefits, must be made. 
. . A national government alone, properly constituted, will 
answer this pui'pose, and he begged it may be considered that the 
present is the last moment for establishing one. After this select 
experiment, the people will despair," 

Mr. Hamilton said, he was unfriendly to both plans. " He was 



292 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

particularly opposed to that from New Jersey, being fully con- 
vinced that no amendment of the Confederation, leaving the States 
in possession of their sovereignty, could possibly answer the pur- 
pose. On the other hand, he confessed he was much discouraged 
by the amazing extent of country, in expecting the desired bless- 
ings from any general sovereignty that could be substituted. As 
to the powers of the convention, he thought the doubts started on 
that subject had arisen from distinctions and reasonings too 
subtle. 

" A federal government he conceived to mean an association of 
independent communities into one. 

" He agreed with the honorable gentleman from Virginia, that 
we owed it to our country to do, on this emergency, whatever we 
should deem essential to its happiness. The States sent us here to 

provide for the exigencies of the Union The question is, 

"What provision shall we make for the happiness of our country ? " 

General Hamilton then read his " plan," which, however, he 
remarked, he did not mean to offer to the Convention. 

Mr. Martin said, " he considered that the separation from Great 
Britain placed the thirteen States in a state of nature towards each 
other ; that they would have remained in that state till this time, 
but for the confederation ; that they entered into the confederation 
on a footing of equality ; that they met now to amend it, on the 
same footing, and that he could never accede to a plan that would 
introduce an inequality and lay ten States at the mercy of Virginia, 
Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania." 

Mr. Wilson " could not admit the doctrine, that when the colo- 
nies became independent of Great Britain, they became indepen- 
dent also of each other. By the Declaration of Independence, the 
United Colonies were declared to be free and independent States ; 
he inferred that they were independent, not individually, but 
unitedly, and that they were confederated, as they were indepen- 
dent States." 

Col. Mason. — " The essential difference between the two plans 
had been clearly stated. The principal objections against that of 
Mr. Randolph were, the want of power and the want of practi'^ 



EXTRACTS FROM THE DEBATE. 293 

coMlity. There can be no weight in the first, as the fiat is not to 
be here, but in the people. He thought with his colleague (Mr. 
Randolph) that there were besides, certain crises, in which all the 
ordinary cautions yielded to public necessity. The impracticabil- 
ity of gaining the public concurrence, he thought was still more 
groundless. . . . He took this occasion to repeat that, notwith- 
standing his solicitude to establish a national government, he never 
would agree to abolish the State governments, or render them ab- 
solutely insignificant. They were as necessary as the general gov- 
ernment, and he would be equally careful to preserve them. He 
was aware of the difficulty of drawing the line between them, but 
hoped it was not insurmountable." 

Mr. Luther Martin " agreed with Col. Mason as to the impor- 
tance of the State governments ; he would support them at the 
expense of the general government, which was instituted for the 
purpose of that support. ... At the separation from the British 
empire, the people of America preferred the establishment of them- 
selves into thirteen separate sovereignties, instead of incorporating 
-themselves into one. To these they look up for the security of 
their lives, liberties, and pi'operties ; to these they must look up. 
The federal government they formed to defend the whole against 
foreign nations in time of war, and to defend the lesser States 
against the ambition of the larger." 

Mr. Sherman. — " The complaints at present are not that the 
views of Congress are unwise or unfaithful, but that their powers 
are insufiicient for the execution of their views. The national debt, 
and the want of power somewhere, to draw forth the national re- 
sources, are the great matters that press. All the States were sen- 
sible of the defects of power in Congress. . . . For want of a gen- 
eral system, taxes to a due amount had not been drawn from trade, 
which was the most convenient resource. The disparity of States 
in point of size, he perceived, was the main difiiculty. But the 
large States had not yet suffered from the inequality of votes en- 
joyed by the smaller ones. In all the great and general points, the 
interests of all the States were the same. ... If the difficulty on 
the subject of representation cannot otherwise be got over, he would 

25* 



294 ANALYSIS OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

agree to have two branches, and a proportional representation in 
one of them, provided each State had an equal voice in the other." 

Dr. Johnson said, — "They [the advocates of the Virginia 
plan] wished to leave the States in possession of a considerable, 
though a subordinate jurisdiction. They had not yet, however, 
shown how this could consist with, or be secured against, the general 
sovereignty and jurisdiction which they proposed to give to the 
national government." 

Mr. Madison " was of opinion in the first place, that there was 
less danger of encroachment from the general government than 
ft-om the State governments ; and in the second place, that the mis- 
chiefs from encroachments would be less fatal if made by the for- 
mer than if made by the latter. All the examples of other con- 
federacies prove the greater tendency, in such systems, to anarchy 
than to tyranny ; to disobedience of the members, than usurpations 
of the federal head. Our own experience had fully illustrated this 
tendency. But it will be said, that the proposed change in the 
principles and form of the Union will vary the tendency : that the 
general government will have real and greater powers, and will be 
derived, in one branch at least, from the people, not from the gov- 
ernments of the States. To give full force to this objection, let it 
be supposed for a moment that indefinite power should be given to 
the general legislature, and the States reduced to corporations de- 
pendent on the general legislature — why should it follow that the 
general government would take from the States any branch of their 
power, as far as its operation was beneficial and its continuance 
desirable to the people ? In some of the States, particularly in 
Connecticut, the townships are incorporated, and have a certain 
limited jurisdiction, — have the representatives of the people of 
the townships in the legislation of the State ever endeavored to 
despoil the townships of any part of their local authority ? As far 
as this local authority is convenient to the people, they are attached 
to it ; and their representatives, chosen by and amenable to them, 
naturally respect their attachment to this as much as their attach- 
ment to any other right or interest. The relation of a general gov- 
ernment to State governments is parallel. 



EXTRACTS PKOM THE DEBATE. 295 

" Guards were more necessary against encroachments of the State 
governments on the general government, than of the latter on the 
former. The great objection made against an abolition of the 
State governments was, that the general government could not 
extend its care to all the minute objects which fall under the cog- 
nizance of the local jurisdictions. The objection as stated lay not 
against the probable abuse of the general power, but against the 
imperfect use that could be made of it throughout so great an ex- 
tent of country, and over so great a variety of objects. As far as 
its operations would be practicable, it would not, in this view, be 
improper ; as far as it would be impracticable, the convenience of 
the general government itself would concur with that of the people 
in the maintenance of subordinate governments." 



HISTORY 



COLONIAL CONFEDERATIONS 



INTRODUCTION. 

It is my purpose in the following sketch to show how the 
American system of government came into operation, and briefly 
to trace the course of events which led to the adoption of the 
Federal Constitution. I think it will be made to appear that the 
whole structure of our political institutions is the natural produc- 
tion of the principles laid down by the founders of the several 
States. As originally planted, each colony or settlement was a 
distinct community, with a jurisdiction over its own internal affairs, 
entirely independent of its neighbors. Several of these colonies, 
as Plymouth, Connecticut, and Rhode Island, established their 
governments by voluntary association, without any charter or 
authority but the consent of the governed. The other colonies, 
although acting under royal charters, exercised the right of local 
legislation by assemblies, chosen by themselves, and the distance 
which separated the colonies from the mother country, and the 
disturbed and revolutionary condition of the British government 
during much of our colonial existence, greatly favored the devel- 
opment and facilitated the exercise of the principles of self-gov- 
ernment. Favored by these circumstances, the infant States early 
attained a strong and vigorous individuality. Each colony re- 

( 297) 



298 INTRODUCTION. 

garded itself as practically a sovereign community, although they 
all recognized a sort of vague allegiance to the British crown. 
This idea, after the Declaration of Independence, ripened into the 
great doctrine of State Rights. 

The colonies, in the earlier periods of their history, were small 
and feeble, and surrounded by tribes of jealous aborigines and by 
rival and often hostile European settlements. As a security 
against the dangers which threatened them from these sources, and 
left to their own resources for the means of defence, the expedient 
of temporary alliances soon gave place to permanent confederacies. 
These were succeeded by annual Congresses, — by the Confedera- 
tion which conducted the country through the struggle of the 
Revolution, — and, finally, by the establishment of the federal 
government. 

In the compilation of the following historical sketch, I have fol- 
lowed, mainly, the authority, and quoted with considerable free- 
dom, the language, of the " History of the United States," by the 
Hon. George Bancroft, to whom I wish to make proper acknowl- 
edgments. I have also consulted many other works, as indicated 
in the text. 



HISTORY. 



General Washington commences his first inaugural address to 
the first Congress of the United States assembled under the Con- 
stitution, in the following language : — 

" No people can be bound to acknowledge and adore the Invisi- 
ble Hand which conducts the affairs of men more than the people 
of the United States. Every step by which they have advanced 
to the character of an independent nation seems to have been dis- 
tinguished by some token of providential agency ; and in the im- 
portant revolution just accomplished, in the system of their united 
government, the tranquil deliberations, and voluntary consent of so 
many distinct communities from which the event has resulted, can- 
not be compared with the means by which most governments have 
been established, without the return of pious gratitude along with 
an humble anticipation of the future blessings which the past seems 
to pi'esage." 

Among these " steps " so appropriately alluded to by the Father 
of his country, none are more significant than those which attended 
the discovery of this continent. History teaches that each of the 
great divisions of the earth has developed a peculiar and distinc- 
tive phase of human civilization. Africa, whose unwritten annals 
are brought down to us by the pyramids and other enduring mon- 
uments of physical power, appears to have produced what may be 
regarded as physical civilization of a high order. Asia, whose ex- 
isting fossilized and petrified forms of civil and social institutions 
have remained nearly stationary from the earliest periods of au- 
thentic history, appears to have been the theatre of the second 
great " step " in the development of human nature. 

(299) 



300 - HISTORY OF THE 

Europe had been reserved for the development of the next stage 
of human progress. This was ushered in by the birth of the arts 
and sciences, of language, literature, poetry, and eloquence of 
Greece and Kome; and consummated by the establishment of 
modern Christian civilization. 

The Old World was now overspread with institutions differing 
in their character in the various countries which had given them 
birth, but all attached to the soil, and as permanently affixed to it 
as the mountains and valleys over which their influence extended. 

Countries and nations have like characteristics with individual 
man. They have their periods of growth and decay ; of youth, 
manhood, and age. And it is remarkable that no new people or 
nation has seemed to flourish upon the soil of a preceding one. If 
a nation has become decrepid and died out, the soil appears to 
have been exhausted, no phoenix springs from its ashes. The em- 
pire of the Ptolemies and the Pharaohs, Persia, Babylon, Syria, 
Palestine, and even Greece and Rome, are illustrations of this 
great law. In neither of those countries has a new or powerful 
people resuscitated the greatness and glory of the departed. It 
seems to be a law of our nature, that every successive step of pro- 
gress which mar^s a distinctive era in the upward development of 
the human race, must be taken upon a virgin soil. 

American civilization is a new civilization. American nation- 
ality is not a continuation or an extension of any or all of the Euro- 
pean policies, but a new and distinct system of national develop- 
ment. Africa has produced and developed the African ; Asia has 
produced and developed the Asiatic ; Europe has fulfilled the same 
function for the European. America has been reserved to become 
the theatre of American civilization. 

The existence of the western continent was made known to the 
world through the genius and enterprise of Christopher Columbus, 
towards the close of the fifteenth century of the Christian era. 
During the succeeding century, several permanent settlements 
were made upon the West India Islands and the adjacent main 
lands. About the same time, the coasts of the United States were 
discovered by English navigators. It is generally conceded that 



COLONIAL CONFEDERATIONS. 301 

the American continent was first actually discovered by John and 
Sebastian Cabot, sailing under the English flag, in the year 1496. 
The first permanent settlement made within the original limits of 
the United States, was at Jamestown, Virginia, in 1607. This 
settlement was made, and a colonial government established under 
a charter from the English crown. 

The colony of Plymouth, the second in order of time, was 
founded in 1620. Unlike that at Jamestown, the founders of 
New England had no charter or authority from any established 
government of the old world. They had long been exiles and 
outcasts from their native England. 

Mr. John Quincy Adams, in a discourse dehvered before the 
Massachusetts Historical Society, in 1843, says : " The Plymouth 
colony is remarkable for having furnished the first example in 
modern times, of a social compact or system of government, 
instituted by voluntary agreement, conformably to the laws of 
nature, by men of equal rights and about to establish their perma- 
nent habitation as a community, in a new country. Upon landing 
at Plymouth, they had no charter from their king and no right 
[grantj to the soil upon which they landed." Before they left the 
deck of the Mayjloioer, they drew up and signed articles of com- 
pact, as the basis of their future government. " This social com- 
pact was the necessary result of their situation, as men in a state 
of nature, subject to no human law but that which they consented 
to impose upon themselves," and it contains the leading principles 
of those great doctrines which were subsequently announced to 
the world in the Declaration of Independence. 

Within twenty years from the landing of the Pilgrim fathers, 
colonies were planted and separate jurisdictions established in 
Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island, 
and other places. The colonies in Connecticut and Rhode Island, 
like that at Plymouth, established their own governments, without 
recourse to royal charters. 

As early as 1636, the idea of a confederacy began to be agitated 
amongst the New England colonies ; and in the following year, 
a conference was held in Boston, between the magistrates and 

26 



302 HISTORY OF THE 

ministers of the colonies of Plymouth and Massachusetts, with the 
view of forming an alliance offensive and defensive. Mr. Adams, 
in the discourse before alluded to says, that " the idea of a con- 
federacy seems to have originated with the colony of Plymouth, 
which submitted the proposition to Massachusetts on the 12th of 
May, 1637." 

Other authorities state that the original movement towards a 
confederation proceeded from the colonies of Connecticut and New 
Haven.* But the Connecticut proposition is dated August 21, 
1637, more than three months later than that of Plymouth. 
These movements resulted in the assembling of a convention in 
Boston for the purpose of agreeing to articles of union, " but the 
apprehensions of Connecticut dictated such extreme reserve in 
relation to grants of power to the proposed confederacy, that 
Massachusetts did not deem it desirable to prosecute the scheme." 

The proposition was renewed by Connecticut in 1639, in conse- 
quence of the dangers which threatened that colony from the 
encroachments of their Dutch neighbors, inhabiting the country 
along the banks of the Hudson river. It was, however, again 
unsuccessful, the government of Massachusetts " not being satisfied 
with having an equal vote in the confederacy with the smaller 
colonies," and the latter firmly adhering to the doctrine of equal 
colonial dignity. 

The breaking out of the civil war in England, and the circum- 
stances which suri'ounded the colonies at home, seeming to throw 
them upon their own resources for providing for their common 
defence against the encroachments of the French and theii' Indian 
allies upon the north, and the Dutch upon the west, as well as 
against the hostile Indian tribes, the General Court of Massa- 
chusetts, in 1642, ajipointed a committee to take into consider- 
ation the expediency and practicability of forming a union of the 
colonies. This committee was instructed to report at the suc- 
ceeding session of the General Court. As the result of this move- 
ment, commissioners from the several colonies assembled in Boston 
on the 10th of May, 1643. The first difficulty which presented 

* Palfrey'g History of New England, Vol I. p. 626. 



COLONIAL CONFEDERATIONS. 303 

itself in the deliberations of tlie convention was the question 
involving the power of the several colonies in the general assem- 
bly. Massachusetts was nearly as large and populous, and 
probably more wealthy, than all the others combined, and insisted 
upon a relative suffrage in the confederacy. The Plymouth 
delegates, on the other hand, were under special instructions not 
to yield the principle of colonial equality in the general body. 
That colony also required that the articles agreed on, should 
not be obligatory upon her, until they had been approved by a 
popular vote. 

After a session of nine days, the commissioners agreed upon 
twelve articles, to constitute the organic law of the new general 
government. 

These articles were, in substance, as follows : namely,* 
First. " The colonies of Massachusetts, Plymouth, Connecticut, 
and New Haven, do agree and conclude that they will hereafter 
be called and known as the United Colonies of Netv Eng- 

J.AND." 

Second. "The said United Colonies, for themselves and their 
posterities, do jointly and severally hereby enter into a firm and 
perpetual league of friendship and amity, for offence and defence, 
mutual advice and succor upon all just occasions, for their mutual 
safett and general welfare." 

Third. "Each colony retains its distinct and separate jurisdic- 
tion and control over its domestic and local affairs, institutions and 
laws. No two colonies are to be joined in one jurisdiction, nor any 
other colony admitted into the confederacy, without the consent of 
the whole." 

Fourth. " The charge of all wars, offensive and defensive, and 
other general expenses, shall be borne in proportion to the number 
of male inhabitants between sixteen and sixty years of age, in 
each colony." 

Fifth. " Upon due notice from any colony, of an invasion, the 
other colonies shall immediately furnish and send forward their 
respective quotas of troops," &c. 

* Hazard's Historical Collectipns, Vol. I. p. 1. 



304 HISTORY OF THE 

Sixth. The general assembly of the united colonies was to con- 
sist of two commissioners from each colony, and to meet annually 
on the first Monday of September. This body had power to 
hear, examine, weigh, and determine all aifairs of war or peace, 
and other matters pertaining to the general welfare — " hut not to 
intermeddle with the local affairs of the colonies." The concur- 
rence of two thii-ds of the body was sufficient authority to carry 
into effect any proposed measure, but if less than two thirds con- 
cuiTed, a majority could submit the measure to the consideration of 
the respective governments for decision. 

Seventh. Provides for the annual election of the President. 

Eighth. The assembled commissioners are authorized to frame 
and establish general regulations of a civil nature for preserving 
the general peace and preventing occasions for war ; to regulate 
intercourse with Indian tribes. 

Ninth. "It is also agreed, that if any servant shall run away 
from his master, into any other of these confederated jurisdictions, 
that in such case, upon the certificate of one magistrate in the juris- 
diction out of which the said servant fled, or upon other due proofs 
the said servant shall be delivered either to his master or to any 
other that pursues and brings such certificate or proof." 

Tenth. Provides against hasty or inconsiderate wars being en- 
tered into or fomented by any of the colonies. 

Eleventh. Makes provision for extraordinary meetings of the 
general assembly. 

Twelfth. It is agreed that this confederacy shall be perpetual, 
and if any of the confederates shall violate or fail to comply with 
the articles of the confederacy, the breach and consequent injury 
shall be duly considered and adjudged by the commissioners of the 
other colonies, " so that the peace and the confederation shall be 
entirely preserved without violation." 

An examination of this confederation and of the principles 
involved in its inception and development, will show that it 
involves the exercise of sovereign power in its highest attributes. 
By it, provision is made for a government to which is committed 
the control of the foreign relations of the confederacy, and authority 



COLONIAL CONFEDERATIONS. 305 

over other matters of great and general concern, while local powers 
and objects of government are carefully reserved to the local juris- 
dictions. 

The New England confederacy of 1643, was the model and pro- 
totype of the North American confederacy of 1756, and of the 
continental Congress of 1774. 

The almost incessant wars which grew out of the constant 
struggles of England and France for ascendency on this continent, 
and in which the colonies warmly sympathized, finally led to the 
meeting of a general Congress of the colonies at New York in 
1690. 

On the 8th February, 1696, William Penn submitted to the 
boai'd of trade in London, a plan for a union of the American col- 
onies. He proposed that " the several colonies do meet once a 
year, and oftener, if need be, during war, and once in two years in 
peace, by stated deputies, to debate and resolve of such measures 
as are most advisable for their better understanding and the public 
tranquillity and safety." 

"When the information of the passage of the stamp act, by the 
British Parliament, reached the colonies, indicating the fixed pur- 
pose of that government to tax America, without her consent, a 
general determination to resist its execution, was manifested. 
The General Court of Massachusetts, which, Mr. Bancroft says, " is 
certainly the parent of the American Union," immediately ex- 
tended an invitation to the other colonies to meet in general Con- 
gress. In pursuance of this invitation, the colonies met in New 
York in October, 1765. Delegates were present from Massachu- 
setts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Penn- 
sylvania, Delaware, Maryland, and South Carolina. 

This Congress adopted a declaration of rights, asserting that the 
sole power of taxation resided in the people of the colonies, and 
adopted other energetic measures. 

In 1751, Archibald Kennedy proposed that provision should be 
made, by act of Parliament, for an annual meeting of commis- 
sioners from all the colonies, to be held at New York, for the pur- 

26* 



306 HISTORY OF THE 

pose of providing means of defence against the French and 
Indians. 

In 1752, an article appeared in a Philadelphia newspaper, 
understood to have been from the pen of Dr. Franklin, in which a 
voluntary union, originating in the colonies themselves, and under 
their exclusive control and management, was advocated as prefera- 
ble to one imposed by Parliament. The writer thought it would 
be very strange, if six nations of ignorant savages should be capa- 
ble of forming a scheme for such a union, and be able to execute 
it in such a manner as that it has subsisted for ages, and that yet a 
like union should be impracticable for ten or a dozen English 
colonies, to whom it was more necessary and must be more advan- 
tageous. 

In accordance with these and other similar suggestions, commis- 
sioners from several of the colonies, including Virginia and all the 
colonies north of it, assembled at Albany in the summer of 1754, 
to which Dr. Franklin submitted a project of union. 

Hitherto all the propositions for a union of the colonies, looked 
mainly to a means of common defence against the hostile demon- 
strations of the aborigines and the threatened and attempted en- 
croachments of the French. But the conquest of Canada by the 
united arms of England and America, ushered in a new era of our 
histor'y. The French power had substantially disappeared from 
the continent, and the Indians, weakened and exhausted by their 
long struggles with the superior race, were disposed to peace. 
But instead of the repose which the colonies might have reasonably 
anticipated from the retirement of their natural and ancient ene- 
mies, they were immediately precipitated into a still more severe 
and momentous struggle with their mother country. They had 
contended with the savage for the right to occupy the continent 
and turn its wilderness into fruitful fields — and with the French 
for the right of growth and expansion. They were now to contend 
with the more formidable power of the mother country for exist- 
ence as a free people. From their earliest settlement the colonies 
had recognized a quasi allegiance to the British crown, but they 
had, at the same time, claimed and exercised the right of sub- 



COLONIAL CONFEDERATIONS. 307 

stantial self-government. While the French power hovered over 
their northern border, this I'ight, although repeatedly threatened, 
was successfully maintained. But no sooner had the British gov- 
ernment, by the aid of the colonies, triumphed over their rival, 
than they instituted a series of measures for the subjugation of the 
colonies themselves. These led to what may be properly regarded 
as the first " American Congress." 

On the 6th of June, 1765, James Otis introduced into the House 
of Delegates of Massachusetts, a proposition " for calling an 
American Congress, which should come together without asking 
the consent of the king, and should consist of committees from each 
of the thirteen colonies, to be appointed directly by the delegates 
of the people without regard to the other branches of the legisla- 
ture." The immediate object was to concert measures for a gen- 
eral resistance to the stamp act. The measure was adopted, and 
letters were sent to all the colonies, inviting the meeting of the 
Congress in the following October. 

Nine colonies, represented by twenty-eight delegates, assembled 
in the city of New York on the 7th of that month. 

After the examination of the credentials of the members, they 
proceeded by ballot to the election of president, and Timothy 
EuGGLES, of Massachusetts, was declared to be duly elected, and 
conducted to the chair. 

This was unquestionably the signal gun which aroused the con- 
tinent, and called to a concentration of its energies for the great 
struggle of the Revolution. Before, however, these proceedings 
could have become known in the sister colonies, they were aroused 
to simultaneous action. The celebrated resolutions of Patrick 
Henry were passed in the House of Burgesses of Virginia on the 
last day of May. 

The hope of Otis, the originator of the movement, was, that a 
Union would be formed, which in its result, would " knit and work 
into the very blood and bones of the original system, every region 
as fast as settled." How fully has this aspiration been realized ! 
And the magnanimous Gadsden of South Carolina said, in his 
opening speech — " We should stand upon the broad common 



308 HISTORY OF THE 

ground of those natural rights that we all feel and know as men. 
There ought to be no New England man, no New Yorker, known 
on the continent, but all of us Amei-icans." 

The immediate result of this movement was a complete triumph 
of the colonies, in the repeal of the obnoxious law — but the ulti- 
mate result is yet to be developed by the progress and destiny of 
the American Union. The idea of a union of the colonies for mu- 
tual support and defence, had become the pervading sentiment of 
the popular mind. They began to speak of each other as " sister 
colonies," and regard for the common interests became interwoven 
with all their ideas of patriotism. " If Boston suffered, Charleston 
rushed to her relief, with the unselfish and prodigal zeal of a sister's 
love." 

In 1766, Mayhew of Boston, suggested whether " it would not 
be decorous for our Assembly to send circulars to all the rest, 
expressing a desire to cement union among ourselves ? A good 
foundation for this," he adds, " has been laid by the Congress at 
New York." And in 1768, the House of Repi'esentatives of Mas- 
sachusetts directed a circular letter, drafted by Samuel Adams, to 
be despatched to each House of Representatives or of Burgesses, 
on the continent, with that object in view. When intelligence of 
this proceeding reached England, it was regarded by the ministry 
as a movement to prepare the country for rebellion and revolution ; 
and it was determined that immediate measures must be taken to 
curb the independent spirit of the ofiending province. Orders 
were sent to the governors of the other twelve colonies, warning 
them to give no countenance to the " seditious paper." The Bur- 
gesses of Virginia, regardless of these warnings, responded to the 
call of Massachusetts, assured her of their applause and support, 
and directed their speaker " to write to the respective speakers of 
all the assemblies on the continent, to make known their proceed- 
ings and to intimate how necessary they thought it that the colo- 
nies should unite." The Assembly of South Carolina, " sitting 
with its doors locked, unanimously directed its speaker to signify to 
both provinces its entire approbation" of the course they had 
adopted. The other colonies manifested the same determination to 
make common cause in defence of the " liberties of America." 



COLONIAL CONFEDERATIONS. 809 

In 1769, the House of Burgesses of Virginia passed resolutions, 
claiming for that body " the sole right of imposing taxes on the in- 
habitants " of that dominion, and " asserted the lawfulness and 
expediency of procuring a concert of the colonies in case of the 
violated rights of America." These resolutions were directed to be 
communicated " to every legislature in America," asking their con- 
currence. Encouraged by this bold and manly position of the Old 
Dominion, the other colonies adopted the same or similar resolu- 
tions. 

The assembly of New York took one step in advance of the posi- 
tions assumed by the other colonies, by passing resolutions inviting 
each province, without waiting for further aggressions, to elect 
delegates at once, to a general congress, " which should exercise 
legislative power for them all." Virginia concurred in the proposi- 
tion, but the other colonies were not prepared for so bold and de- 
cided a step at that time. 

Towards the close of the year 1772 was brought into operation 
that great institution, which has been declared to have included 
the whole Revolution, " The Committee of Correspondence." 
Simple and unostentatious in its organization, it became the germ 
of a power which not only conducted the American colonies to in- 
dependence and established a republic which already extends from 
ocean to ocean, and controls the destiny of one half the world ; but 
which, by force of example, overturned the most ancient and pow- 
erful thrones of the other hemisphere, and annihilated the feudal 
institutions which had enslaved the peoples of Europe for ten cen- 
turies. This powerful engine of the popular will was called into 
being by the fertile intellect and fervid patriotism of Sajiuel 
Adams, a name not unworthy to be inscribed upon the same im- 
perishable tablet of the American heart, with that of George 
Washington. 

On the 2d of November, 1772, the citizens of Boston were 
assembled in town-meeting, to take into consideration the " rights 
of the colonists," and " the infringements and violations thereof." 
They had been warned by the royal governor, that the law did not 
authorize town-meetings to meddle with such matters. They, how- 
ever, resolved that they " had and ought to have, a right" to con- 



310 HISTORY OF THE 

sider their " grievances," " and to communicate their sentiments to 
other towns." 

To this mass meeting of the citizens of Boston, assembled for 
consultation upon the great questions involved in the controversy 
waged between themselves and their country on one side, and the 
British government on the other, touching the "rights of America," 
and the aggressions of England, Samuel Adams, the representa- 
tive man of the time, submitted the following resolution : — 

Resolved, "That a Committee of Correspondence be ap- 
pointed, to consist of twenty-one persons, to state the rights of the 
colonists of this province in particular, as men, as Christians, and 
as subjects, to communicate and publish the same," &c. 

The object was to secure a concert of action among the towns of 
the province, so that their delegates to the general assembly might 
be prepared, at their approaching session, to extend an invitation 
to the other colonies, to take measures for the assembling of another 
general congress. 

This was a mo%'eraent in the right direction, and based upon the 
fundamental principles of civil government. It contemplated the 
establishment of a government emanating immediately and directly 
from the will of the people, without the intervention of any of the 
preexisting forms of law or government. Its result was, to repel 
the foreign domination with which they were threatened, by super- 
seding the existing forms of authority, which were so interwoven 
with foreign elements as to be incompatible with the full enjoyment 
of their natural rights. It was the inauguration of a new era in the 
gradual development of American institutions. 

" The flame caught," and in a short time all the principal towns 
were organized, with their committees of correspondence, acting in 
harmonious concert with that of Boston, and the breath of life was 
breathed into the " Commonwealth of Massachusetts." It 
ceased forever to be a dependency of a foreign jurisdiction. 

In their first report submitted to the Town-Meeting held in 
Faneuil Hall, on the 20th of November, the Committee enumerate, 
among the natural rights of the colonists, " the right to life, to lib- 
erty, and to property — the right to support and defend these — 
and the right to change their allegiance for their sake ; " thus dis- 



COLONIAL CONFEDERATIONS. 311 

tinctly announcing the great doctrines of the Declaration of Inde- 
pendence, and foreshadowing its approach. 

On the meeting of the Assembly, in January, 1773, the speaker 
transmitted to Richard Henry Lee, of Virginia, the proceedings in 
Boston and other towns of Massachusetts through their committees 
of correspondence, and suggested the organization of provincial 
committees, for the purpose of inaugurating a continental con- 
federacy. The fate of the proposition depended upon the decision 
of the Old Dominion. The Burgesses met on the fourth of March, 
and the pi'oceedings in Massachusetts were laid before them. Vir- 
ginia did not hesitate. A series of resolutions for a system of inter- 
colonial committees of correspondence was introduced and unani- 
mously adopted, and the committee was at once appointed on the 
part of that colony. They sent their resolves to the other colonies 
and asked concurrence in that great measure which was to realize 
the idea of an American Union. The colonies one after another 
responded with zeal and alacrity ; and thus an inchoate organiza- 
tion was eflFected, competent to convene a Congress on any emer- 
gency. 

During the autumn of 1773, there appeared in the " Boston 
Gazette " a series of articles advocating " an annual Congress of 
American States," to form and provide for the maintenance of a 
bill of rights ; and in case of the continued attempts of the British 
government to subvert their liberties, " to form an independent 
State — an American commonwealth." 

In March, 1774, the Massachusetts committee of correspondence 
despatched a circular to the other colonies, explaining why that 
colony had been under the necessity of proceeding so far of itself, 
and asking for its future guidance, the benefit of the councils of 
the whole country. They concluded by suggesting that a general 
Congress of all the colonies on the continent should be con- 
vened. 

In the mean time, the British government were busily engaged 
in maturing their measures for reducing the colonies to obedience. 
The town of Boston was first to feel the iron grasp. The Boston 
port bill, as the leading measure of the ministry, and the special 
favorite of the king, was introduced by Lord North on the IStii 



312 HISTORY OF THE 

March. '•' The town of Boston," said one of the leading advocates 
of the measure, " ought to be knocked about their ears and de- 
stroyed. Delenda est Carthago. You will never have proper 
obedience to the laws of this country, until you have destroyed 
that nest of locusts." " Put an end to their town-meetings" ex- 
claimed another. " What passed in Boston," said a third, " is the 
last overt act of high treason." And on signing the bill, the king 
is said to have made the significative remark, that " Boston has 
now no option but to claim entire independence or approach the 
throne as a penitent." Boston had no difficulty in making her 
choice. 

The second penal bill for Massachusetts contained a clause abol- 
ishing town-meetings, except for the choice of town-officers, or on 
the special permission of the governor. 

The course of events and the force of circumstances had com- 
pelled Massachusetts, and especially the town of Boston, to take 
the lead, and to unfurl the banner of the American Revolution. 
But when its ample folds were given to the breeze, the whole peo- 
ple of the continent were impelled by one general and all-pervading 
impulse, to the accomplishment of the great destiny opening 
before them. " As the earth bursts forth into new life at the bid- 
ding of the sun and showers of spring," the great heart of the 
Anglo-American colonies was expanded by a common fire of 
patriotic devotion to the common cause. 

In this early stage of the struggle, it was the evident purpose of 
the British ministry to insulate Massachusetts from her sister col- 
onies, and they even hoped to confine the contest to her refractory 
capital. Hence they commenced their operations by closing that 
port with the view of starving its inhabitants into submission. 
The act was received on the 10th of May, 1774, and the Boston 
committee of correspondence, immediately met and invited the 
committees of the neighboring towns to a conference " on the criti- 
cal state of public afl^airs." The committee met in the " Cradle 
of Liberty" on the 12th of May, and while they were in session, 
as if by a miraculous interposition, they received intelligence, that 
in answer to the recent circular, all the thirteen colonies had come 
to the unanimous resolution to accede to the Union. 



COLONIAL CONFEDERATIONS. 313 

The next day a trwn-meetmg was called, and the port act was 
read and discussed. The people resolved not to be intimidated 
into submission, but " to maintain to the utmost of our abilities, the 
rights of America." They adopted an appeal to tlie " sister col- 
onies, promising to suffer for America with becoming fortitude," 
but " entreating not to be left to suffer alone." 

The New York committee anticipated the appeal of Boston. 
Having received a copy of the " port act " directly from England, 
they held a meeting and adopted resolutions recommending the 
holding of a " genei'al Congress," which they immediately for- 
warded to the other colonies. " This prompt and decisive action 
sent a thrill of joy through the hearts of the suffering Bostonians, 
and assured them of the sympathy of the continent." 

The Boston circular was adopted on the 12th of May, and 
before the close of the month nearly all of the colonies had con- 
curred in the suggestion for a general Congress, and adopted the 
cause of Boston as their own. Virginia and South Cai'olina took 
immediate action, on the arrival of the Boston messenger, for a 
united resistance. The committee of Connecticut entreated Mas- 
sachusetts to appoint a time and place for the meeting of the Con- 
gress without delay. 

In June, the assembly of Massachusetts met in regular annual 
session. The eyes of the continent were fixed upon them. It had 
been univei'sally conceded, that from them was to proceed the call, 
fixing the time and place for assembling of the American Congress. 
Gen. Gage, at the head of a formidable military force, had just 
entered upon the government of that colony. He was armed with 
despotic power, and specially authorized to arrest and bring to 
justice Samuel Adams and other ringleaders. Adams was a mem- 
ber of the legislature and of the committee of nine, on the condi- 
tion of the colony. After secret consultation with a sufficient 
number of his colleagues to insure success, on Friday the 17th 
June, the assembly having ordered the doors to be closed and 
" locked," Mr. Adams reported the proposition for the meeting of 
the Continental Congress at Philadelphia on the fii'st of 
September. The measure was carried through the house, dele 
gates elected, a tax levied to defray the expenses. 

27 



314 HISTORY OF THE 

In the mean time, the governor becoming alarmed at these 
unusual proceedings, sent his secretary with a message, dissolving 
the assembly. But he knocked in vain for admission, until the 
House had accomplished its great object, appealed to the " towns " 
to sustain their proceedings and to provide for the relief of their 
suffering fellow-citizens, and submitted their cause to God and 
their sister colonies. But so universally were the fires of liberty 
already kindled throughout the length and breadth of the land, 
that Rhode Island had already anticipated these proceedings and 
elected her delegates, and before a knowledge of them had 
reached the Brandywine, a convention of the people of Maryland 
had assembled at Annapolis and elected delegates to the Con- 
gi'ess. 

Nothing is more characteristic of the spirit which pervaded the 
country, than the fact, that contributions of provisions poured into 
Boston from the remotest settlements. South Carolina, North 
Carolina, Virginia, and Maryland vied with each other in the 
liberality of their contributions. Washington presided at a meet- 
ing for this purpose and headed the subscription with fifty pounds. 
From the interior valley of Virginia, beyond the Blue Ridge, 
ihrough which wagon roads were not yet constructed, a portion of 
ihe rich harvests of the pioneer farmers was packed on horses to 
Fredericksburg and thence forwarded to the suffering Bostonians — 
''as a free-will offering upon the altar of liberty and fraternity." 

In the midst of these proceedings in the colonies, the British 
government took another step, which, although it was aimed 
directly at Massachusetts only, could not but be regarded as striking 
at the foundation of all pretence at liberty in any of the colonies. 
This was what was called the regulating act. This act abolished 
in effect the charter of Massachusetts, which, in most of its essen- 
tial principles had existed from the original settlement, and con- 
centrated all the powers of government in the hands of the king 
or his representative and appointee, the governor. The council, 
judges, jurors, and other officers were to be appointed by and hold 
their places at the will of the executive. It uprooted one of the 
dearest institutions of New England, then and now regarded as the 
cradle and nursery of democratic principles, nesaely ; the town- 



COLONIAL CONFEDERATIONS. 315 

meeting. In short, it subjected the colony to the condition of a 
penal province. The sister colonies were not deceived by the 
local application of this act. They did not fail to see that the 
principles upon which it was based, would make it equally appli- 
cable to thera, whenever it might suit the caprice of a British 
ministry to subject them to its provisions. They therefore, with a 
sagacious forecast, hastened to meet the issue with united counsels, 
uj)on the soil of Massachusetts. If the charter, laws and customs 
of that colony could be abrogated by the British Parliament, so 
might those of all the others. A sense of common danger was, 
therefore, now added to all the other ties which tended to cement 
the "■ Union of America." " Every grievance of any colony must 
be held as a grievance to the whole " had become the common 
sentiment, and pervaded alike the fishermen along the coasts of 
Maine, and the planters scattered over the broad savannas of the 
Carolinas and Georgia. 

The Congress, which, in the language of Patrick Henry, " was 
the tir.-t in a never-ending succession of Congresses," assembled at 
Carpenter's Hall, Philadelphia, on the 5th of September, 1774. 
Having organized, by the selection of Peyton Randolph as 
president and Charles Thompson as secretary, the first question 
which arose was in relation to the method of voting. It was a 
question of the greatest magnitude, in its bearing upon the future 
political organization of the country. Patrick Henrj^ speaking for 
Virginia, thought '• il would be unjust for a little colony to weigh 
as much in the councils of America as a great one." Mr. Sullivan 
from New Hampshire, responded that " a little colony had its all 
at stake as well as a great one," — thus announcing, in the outset, 
the great doctrine of the equality of the States as independent 
communities. John Adams concurred in the reasoning of Mr. 
Henry, but inclined to a compromise. Without determining the 
question, the Congress adjourned. The next day the discussion 
was resumed. Mr. Henry argued " that British oppression had 
effaced the boundaries of the several colonies." That they were no 
longer Virginians and New Yorkers and New Englanders, but all 
Americans. Mr. Lynch and Mr. Rutledge of South Carolina, 
concurred substantially with Messrs. Henry, Harrison, and Bland 



316 HISTORY OP THE 

in favor of a proportional vote, while Mr. Gadsden of South 
Carohna, and Richard Henry Lee, were disposed to acquiesce in 
the principle of the equality of the colonies. They saw " no way 
of voting but by colonies." 

The first American precedent was, that of the " United Colonies 
of New England" formed in 1643, in which each colony had an 
equal vote. That principle was finally adopted, and it was re- 
solved, that, in taking questions, "each colony shall have one 
vote." 

The wheels of the Revolution were now in motion, and all efforts 
at a reconciliation between the crown and the colonies were un- 
availing. But the Congress proceeded with great caution and de- 
liberation. They sent addresses respectively to the king, the par- 
liament, and the people of Great Britain, in which they calmly 
argued the justice of their cause. Nearly two years passed in this 
state of quasi independence, before the final act of separation was 
accomplished. 

On the 2d of July, 1776, the Continental Congress passed the 
following resolution, namely : — 

" Resolved, That these United Colonies ai"e and of right ought to 
be free and independent States ; that they are absolved from all 
allegiance to the British crown ; and that all political connection 
between them and the State of Great Britain is and ought to be 
totally dissolved." 

On the passage of the • resolution, a special committee was ap- 
pointed to prepare a preamble or declaration of the reasons and 
causes which had led to its adoption, to accompany its promulga- 
tion to the world. On the fourth of July, Mr. Jefferson, in be- 
half of the committee, reported the original draft of the Declara- 
tion of Independence, which, after some amendments and modifi- 
cations, received the unanimous sanction of the Congress, and was 
signed by each member. 

The Congress having been originally assembled without any 
charter or form of legal authority, was without any organic law by 
which its proceedings could be regulated, or any rules by which 
they could be governed. While their duty was merely advisory, 
no great difficulty was experienced, but when, by the progress of 



COLONIAL CONFEDERATIONS. 817 

events, it became to be the supreme authority of a nation, the ne- 
cessity of definite organic principles became apparent. It had 
been agreed at the commencement of the proceedings, that as they 
had no means of ascertaining the relative population of the colo- 
nies, each should have an equal vote in determining questions. 
But as the importance of their proceedings increased in magnitude, 
the larger colonies urged their right to a relative vote. 

The first resolution passed, after the organization of Congress, 
was tlie following, passed September 6, 1774: — 

" Resolved, That in determining questions in Congress, each col- 
ony or province shall have one vote ; the Congress not being pos- 
sessed of, or at present able to procure proper materials for ascer- 
taining the importance of each colony." 

The main objects of the Congress of 1774 were to harmonize 
the views and cement the union of the colonies, and to prepare ad- 
dresses to the king, the parliament, and the people, respectively, of 
Great Britain ; defining and defending the rights, liberties, and 
purposes of the colonies, and demanding their recognition and se- 
curity. 

On the 20th of October, the following preamble and resolutions 
were adopted, namely : — 

" We do for ourselves and the inhabitants of the several colonies 
whom w^e represent, firmly agree and associate, under the sacred 
ties of virtue, honor, and love of our country, as follows : — 

" First, That from and after the first day of December next we 
will not import into British America any goods, &c. from Great 
Britain or Ireland. 

" Second, That we will neither import nor purchase any slave 
imported after the first day of December next ; after which time we 
will wholly discontinue the slave-trade, and will neither be con- 
cerned in it ourselves, nor will we hire our vessels nor sell our 
commodities or manufactures to those who are concerned in it." 

The first of these propositions appears to have originated with a 
convention of delegates of Suffolk county, Mass. 

But as the course of events indicated no reasonable probability 
of a reconciliation between the colonies and the British govern- 
ment, when the Congress assembled in the following year, the ne- 

27* 



318 HISTORY OF THE 

cessity of adopting some definite plan of union of a permanent 
character became apparent. To meet this necessity Doctor 
Franklin, on the 21st July, 1775, submitted the following 
sketch of 



Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union. 

Art. I. The name of this Confederacy shall henceforth be 
" The United Colonies of North America" 

Art. II. The said United Colonies severally enter into a firm 
league of friendship with each other, binding on themselves and 
their posterity, for the common defence against their enemies, for 
the securities of their liberties and properties, the safety of their 
persons and families, and their mutual and general welfare. 

Art. III. Each colony shall enjoy and retain as much as it 
may think fit, its present laws, &c., and may amend its consti- 
tution. 

Art. IV. delegates shall be annually elected in each 

colony to meet in general Congress, at such times and places as 
shall be agreed on in the next preceding Congress, &c. 

Art. V. That the power and duty of Congress shall extend to 
the determining on war and peace; the sending and receiving 
ambassadors, and entering into alliances ; the settling all disputes 
and differences between colony and colony, &c., and the planting 
new colonies when proper. The Congress shall also make such 
general ordinances as, though necessary to the general welfare, 
particular assemblies cannot be competent to, namely, those that 
may relate to our general commerce or general currency ; the 
establishment of ports and the regulation of our common forces. 
The Congress shall also have the appointment of all general offi- 
cers, civil and military, «fec. 

Art. VI. All charges of wars and all other general expenses 
to be incurred for the common welfare, shall be defrayed out of a 
common treasury, which is to be supplied by each colony in pro- 
portion to its number of male polls between sixteen and sixty years 
of age. 



COLONIAL CONFEDERATIONS. 319 

Art. VII. The number of delegates to be elected and sent to 
Congress by each colony shall be regulated by the number of such 
polls returned ; so as that one delegate be allowed for every 5,000 
polls. 

Art. VIII. One half to constitute a quorum. 

Art. IX. An executive council shall be appointed by the Con- 
gress out of its own body, consisting of twelve persons — one third 
to go out annually. [This council to perform usual executive du- 
ties.] 

Art. X. No colony to engage in offensive war without the con- 
sent of Congress. 

Art. XI. The general Congress are authorized to prepare 
amendments, to be ratified by a majority of the colonial assemblies. 

These articles, and particularly the seventh, gave rise to much 
debate and conflict of opinion. The less populous colonies insisted 
upon their equality with the others, as distinct and independent 
political communities, and persistently refused to listen to any com- 
promise on that point ; while the larger colonies, especially Vir- 
ginia and Massachusetts, contended that the vote in Congress 
should be in proportion to the amount contributed to the general 
treasury. The authority of precedent being in favor of the political 
equality of the colonies, that principle maintained its position. The 
consequence was, that no articles of confederation were finally 
agreed on until the 15th of November, 1777, a year and a half 
subsequently to the Declaration of Independence, and during the 
fourth year of the operations of the Congress. These articles were 
not finally ratified by all the colonies until March, 1781, when 
Maryland was induced, by the earnest representations of leading 
statesmen of the country, of the necessity that the States should 
present to foreign countries an aspect of union and harmony 
amongst themselves, in order to secure the confidence of the Euro- 
pean governments, and facilitate the recognition of our independ- 
ence and the negotiation of favorable treaties of friendship and 
commerce, to yield her objections and ratify the articles of union. 

The greatest and most constantly recurring ditficulty which Con- 
gress had to encounter from the commencement of their operations, 



320 HISTORY OF THE 

was the means and the manner of supplying the money required to 
carry on the war. On the 29th of July, 1775, the following reso- 
lution was adopted, namely : — 

" Resolved, That the proportion of quota for each colony be de- 
termined according to the number of inhabitants of all ages, includ- 
ing negroes and mulattoes in each colony." 

This resolution continued in force until the adoption of the Arti- 
cles of Confederation, November, 1777, which provided by the 8th 
article, that " all charges of war and all other expenses that shall 
be incurred for the common defence and general welfare, and 
allowed by the United States in Congress assembled, shall be de- 
frayed out of a common treasury, which shall be supplied by the 
several States, in proportion to the value of all land, within each 
State, granted to or surveyed for any person, as such land and the 
buildings and improvements thereon shall be estimated according 
to such mode as the United States in Congress assembled, shall 
from time to time direct and appoint." These taxes were to be 
levied and collected by the authority of each State, thus leaving 
Congress entirely dependent upon the ability, patriotism, and good 
faith of the respective States, to enable them to sustain the array 
and defray the expenses of government. The unreliability of this 
mode of supply, the insuperable difficulties Avhich attended its prac- 
tical operation, as well as its unequal bearing upon the different 
sections of the country and the disparity between the proportion of 
taxation and repi*esentation, soon led to efforts to remedy its defects. 
This mode of fixing the quotas of the States upon the value of land, 
instead of that based upon population, was adopted in consequence 
of the disagreement as to the proper mode of reckoning slaves. 
The southern States would have agreed to base the proportion of 
taxation upon numbers with a provision that two slaves should be 
counted as one freeman ; but the northern States insisted that all 
persons should count equally. All efforts to effect a more satisfac- 
tory arrangement of the subject proved unsuccessful until the ter- 
mination of the war. But as soon as the country was relieved 
from the pressure of a foreign enemy, the attention of Congress and 
of the country was turned to the means of remedying the radical 
defects of the Articles of Confederation, namely : — those relating to 



COLONIAL CONFEDERATIONS. 321 

the revenues and to the pi-oportion of representation in Congress. 
The resources of the States had become exhausted by the long- 
continued struggle for independence, and they failed to furnish 
their quotas to the national treasury, which was consequently left 
without the means to meet the public engagements. 

In the spring of 1783, a proposition was introduced into Con- 
gress to substitute, for the mode of ascertaining the quotas of the 
States, as fixed by the Articles of Confederation, the following, 
namely : — 

" That the common treasury should be supplied by the several 
States in proportion to the whole number of inhabitants of every 
age, sex, and condition, except Indians, not paying taxes, in each 
State. . . . Provided, that no pei'sons shall be included who are 
bound to service for life, according to the laws of the States to 
which they belong, other than such as may be between the ages of 

years." The purpose was to fill the blank, so as to count 

such slaves only as had attained an age to be efficient and pi'ofitable 
laborers. In the discussion of this proposition, it was generally 
conceded that it would be better to fix the ratio by absolute num- 
bers, than by making a distinction of ages. The proposition was 
finally referred to a committee, who reported, on the 7th of March, 
" that two blacks be rated as one freeman." Mr. Wolcott, of 
Connecticut, moved to amend the report, by requiring " that four 
blacks he counted as three freemen." 

Mr. Carboll, of Maryland, proposed that four negroes he 
counted as one freeman. 

Mr. Williamson, of North Carolina, objected to counting 
jiegroes at all. He regarded them as an incumbrance to the State, 
instead of increasing its ability to pay taxes. 

Mr. RuTLEDGE, of South Carolina, would consent that slaves 
should be rated at half their number, as had been originally pro- 
posed at the formation of the Articles of Confederation, but he 
thought that was really rating them too high. The proportion of 
three to one he thought more just. 

Ml'. Madison, of Virginia, was anxious that a reasonable com- 
promise of these conflicting opinions and interests should be 



322 HISTORY OF THE 

effected ; and in order to accomplish this patriotic object he pro- 
posed, " that Jive negroes be rated as three J^ 

On this proposition of Mr. Madison, the States of New Hamp* 
shire. New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, North 
Carolina, and South Carolina (7), voted in the affirmative, and 
Rhode Island and Connecticut (2), in the negative. The delega- 
tion of Massachusetts was equally divided. 

Thus was fixed the rule for computing the political value of 
slaves, which was subsequently adopted into the federal Constitution 
as an element in determining the proportion of members to which 
the States are entitled in the House of Representatives. In its 
original adoption, it had no reference to slaves, as an element of 
political power. It only regarded them as subjects of taxation. 
The States, therefore, in which they were principally found, con- 
tended that they should be regarded as property and not as per- 
sons or as a portion of the population, while the States in which 
the institution was becoming extinct, claimed that, in federal esti- 
mation, all should be alike counted. It will be seen, that in the 
federal Convention, both parties changed positions, but ultimately 
met upon the same ground. 

But this change in the mode of ascertaining the proportion 
which each State should be required to furnish to the common 
treasury, did not remedy the great evils under which the country 
was suffering in consequence of the deplorable condition of its 
finances. Congress possessed no power to enforce the collection 
of the taxes, or their payment into the treasury when collected, or 
any other means of securing a revenue. The power to regulate 
commerce, and by that means to secure a revenue by means of 
duties on imports, remained with the States. 

The necessity of having this power, in some form and to some 
extent, conferred upon Congress, both as an available and efficient 
means of repleni^hing the treasury and restoring the credit of the 
United States, and of promoting the general interests of commerce, 
continued to attract the earnest consideration of public men. 

Mr. Madison, in the Federalist (p. 36, vol. 1), accords to the 
State of New York the honor of having first officially taken meas- 



COLONIAL CONFEDERATIONS. 323 

ures which lead to the assembling of the constitutional conven- 
tion. 

On the 21st day of July, 1782, the legislature of that State 
passed a series of resolutions in reference to the condition and 
necessities of the confederacy, amongst which is the following : — 

'■^Resolved, That in the opinion of this legislature, the radical 
source of most of our embarrassments, is the want of sufficient 
power in Congress to effectuate that ready and perfect cooperation 
of the different States, on which their immediate safety and future 
happiness depend. That experience has demonstrated the confed- 
eration to be defective in several essential points, particularly 
in not vesting the federal government either with a power of 
providing revenue for itself, or with ascertained and productive 
fund^, secured by a sanction so solemn and general, as would in- 
spire the fullest confidence in them, and make them a substantial 
basis of credit. That these defects ought to be, without loss of 
time repaired; the powers of Congress extended ; a solid security 
established for the payment of debts already incurred, and compe- 
tent means provided for future credit, and for supplying the future 
demands of the war." 

" Resolved, That it appears to this legislature, that the aforegoing 
important ends can never be attained by partial deliberations of 
the States separately ; but that it is essential to the common wel- 
fare, that there should be, as soon as possible, a conference of the 
whule on the subject ; and that it would be advisable for this pur- 
pose, to propose to Congress to recommend, and to each State to 
adopt the measure of assembling a general convention of tlie States, 
specially authorized to revise and amend the confedei'ation, re- 
serving to the respective legislatures a right to ratify their delib- 
erations." 

At the following session of Congress, Mr. Hamilton gave 
notice, that it was his intention, in pursuance of instructions from 
his constituents, to bring forward a plan to provide for the meeting 
of a general convention to revise the Articles of Confederation. 

Mr. GoRHAM of Massachusetts, in the course of some remarks 
on the necessity of general laws for the regulation of commerce, 
made in Congress in April, 1783, said that, " the eastern States, on 



324 HISTORY OF THE 

an invitation of the legislature of Massachusetts, were, with New 
York, about to form a convention for regulating matters of com- 
mon concern." The object was expressed to be, principally, to 
guard against an interference of taxes amongst adjacent States — 
but not to interfere with proper federal authoi-ity. 

Mr. Madison, and other members from Virginia, expressed 
strong disapprobation of these partial conventions, as improper and 
of dangerous tendency. 

Governor Bowdoin, in his annual message to the legislature of 
Massachusetts in May, 1785, suggested the expediency of a gen- 
eral convention of delegates from all the States, to consider and 
determine what further powers ought to be vested in Congress. 
In compliance with this suggestion, the legislature passed a resolu- 
tion recommending that such a convention should be called, to take 
into consideration " the state of the federal union." 

Ttiese proceedings of the executive and legislature of Massachu- 
setts, have been regarded as the first State action which led to the 
meeting of the constitutional convention. But it can hardly be de- 
nied that the proceedings in the legislature of New York, three 
years earlier, looked to the same result. 

Numerous attempts had been made during the war, to procure 
from the States authority for Congress, to levy duties on imports, 
but the assent of all the States could not be procured. It has been 
already seen that the States of New York and Massachusetts had 
recommended a convention to remedy this difficulty. On the 
12th of February, 1783, Congress resolved, " That the establish- 
ment of permanent and adequate funds, or taxes, or duties 
throughout the United States, was indispensable to do justice to 
public creditors." They recommended to the States to vest in 
Congress the authority to levy certain duties for a period of five 
years. An attempt was also made to procure authority to levy 
tax ',s for the Union, separately from the State taxes. General 
Washington, impressed with the absolute necessity of a more per- 
fect union of the States, uses the following language, in a circular 
letter to the governors of the several States, shortly prior to his 
retirement from the army : — " Unless the States will sufier Con- 
gress to exei'cise those prerogatives they are undoubtedly vested 



COLONIAL CONTEDEEATIONS. 325 

with by the Constitution, every thing must very rapidly tend to 
anarchy and confusion. It is indispensable to the hnppiness of 
the individual States, that there should be lodged somewhere, a 
supreme power to regulate and govern the general concerns of the 
confederated republic." " Whatever measures," he adds, " have a 
tendency to dissolve the Union, or contribute to violate or lessen its 
sovereign authority, ought to be considered hostile to the liberty 
and independence of America, and the authors of them treated 
accordingly." 

Notwithstanding the strength of these appeals, the States re- 
fused to yield the power required. It does not appear that the 
proposed convention of the New England States and New York 
ever assembled. In 1785, commissioners were appointed by the 
legislatures of Virginia and Maryland, for the purpose of agree- 
ing upon some common regulations relative to the navigation of 
the Chesapeake Bay and its tributary streams. Finding their 
powers too restricted to accomplish any valuable purpose, the com- 
missioners adjourned, after adopting a recommendation, to be 
reported to their respective legislatures, for the assembling of a 
more general convention, with power to pi'ovide for a local navy 
and a tariff of duties upon imports. The Maryland commissioners 
deemed the concurrence of Delaware and Pennsylvania as assen- 
tial to the proposed measures, and proposed that they should be 
invited to send delegates. 

At the time this report came before the legislature of Virginia, 
a resolution was pending in that body, inviting a meeting of dele- 
gates from all the States as follows : — 

" Resolved, That Edmund Randolph, James Madison, Jr., Wal- 
ter Jones, St. George Tucker, and M. Smith, Esqrs., be appointed 
commissioners, who, or any three of whom, shall meet such com- 
missioners as may be appointed in the other States of the Union, 
at a time and place to be agreed on, to take into consideration the 
trade of the United States ; to examine the relative situations and 
trade of said States ; to consider how far a uniform system in their 
commercial relations may be necessary to their common interests 
and their permanent harmony ; and to report to the several States, 
such an act, relative to this great object, as, when unanimously 

28 



326 HISTORY OF THE 

ratified by them, will enable the United States in Congress, effect- 
ually to provide for the same.'' 

As the result of this movement, delegates from five States 
assembled at Annapolis, on the 11th day of September, 1786, 
This convention, like its predecessor, finding its powers too re- 
stricted to accomplish any valuable purpose, and that less than 
half the States were represented, declined to attempt the execu- 
tion of the task assigned to it ; but, instead of attempting to frame 
a navigation act, to be submitted to the several States, they adopted 
a report from the pen of Alexander Hamilton, recommending the 
appointment of commissioners from all the States, " to meet at 
Philadelphia on the second Monday in May next, to take into con- 
sideration the situation of the United States ; to devise such further 
provisions as shall appear to them necessary to render the Consti- 
tution of the federal government adequate to the exigencies of the 
Union." When this report reached Virginia, it found the legisla- 
ture in session. The proposition was favorably received ; and on 
the 23d November an act was passed for the appointment of the 
delegates as recommended. This act authoi'ized the deputies from 
Virginia " to meet such deputies as may be appointed and au- 
thorized by other States, to assemble in convention at Philadel- 
phia as above recommended, and to join with them in devising and 
discussing all such alterations and further provisions as may be 
necessary to render the federal Constitution adequate to the exi- 
gencies of the Union ; and in reporting such an act for that pur- 
pose to the United States in Congress, as when agreed to by them, 
and duly confirmed by the several States, will effectually provide 
for the same." 

On the 30th of December, the legislature of Pennsylvania 
passed an act appointing delegates from that State, with power to 
join " in devising, deliberating on, and discussing all such altera- 
tions and further provisions as may be necessary to render the 
federal Constitution fully adequate to the exigencies of the Union." 
All the other States, except the State of Rhode Island, appointed 
deputies, with powers nearly identical with those above described. 
The delegates from Delaware were, however, restrained from 



COLONIAL CONFEDERATIONS. 327 

agreeing to any modification of tlie fifth article of Confederation, 
which secures to each State an equal vote. 

The Convention accordingly met in the city of Philadelphia, on 
the 14th day of May, 1787 ; but a majority of States did not 
appear, by their delegates, until the 25th, on which day the Con- 
vention was organized, by the unanimous election of George 
Washington, as its President. 



EI GIN 



THE EEDEEAL CONVENTION. 



PUBLIC PROCEEDINGS, 

Showing the Necessity of a more perfect Union, and 
leading to the meeting of the federal convention. 

Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union between the 
States of New Hampsliire, Massachusetts Bay, Rhode Island 
and Providence Plantations, Connecticut, New York, New 
Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North 
Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. 

Article I. The style of this Confederacy shall be "The 
United States of America." 

Art. II. Each State retains its sovereignty, freedom, and 
independence, and every power, jurisdiction, and right, which is 
not by this confederation expressly delegated to the United States, 
in Congress assembled. 

Art. III. The said States hereby severally enter into a 
firm league of friendship with each other, for their common de- 
fence, the security of their liberties, and their mutual and general 
welfare, binding themselves to assist each other, against all force 
offered to, or attacks made upon them, or any of them, on account 
of religion, sovereignty, trade, or any other pretence whatever. 

Art. IV. The better to secure and perpetuate mutual friend- 
ship and intex'course among the people of the different States in 
this Union, the free inhabitants of each of these States, paupers, 

(328) 



ORIGIN OF THE CONVENTION. 329 

vagabonds, and fugitives from justice excepted, shall be entitled to 
all privileges and immunities of free citizens in the several States ; 
and the people of each State shall have free ingress and regress to 
and from any other State, and shall enjoy therein all the privi- 
leges of trade and commerce, subject to the same duties, imposi- 
tions, and restrictions as the inhabitants thereof respectively, 
provided that such restriction shall not extend so far as to prevent 
the removal of property imported into any State to any other 
State of which the owner is an inhabitant ; provided also that no 
imposition, duties, or restriction shall be laid by any State, on the 
property of the United States, or either of them. 

If any person guilty of, or charged with treason, felony, or other 
high misdemeanor in any State, shall flee from justice, and be 
found in any of the United States, he shall upon demand of the 
governor or executive power of the State from which he fled, be 
delivered up and removed to the State having jurisdiction of his 
offence. 

Full faith and credit shall be given in each of these States to 
the recoi'ds, acts, and judicial proceedings of the courts and magis- 
trates of every other State. 

Art. V. For the moi-e convenient management of the gen- 
eral interest of the United States, delegates shall be annually 
apjjointed in such manner as the legislature of each State shall 
direct, to meet in Congress on the first Monday in November, in 
every year, with a power reserved to each State, to recall its dele- 
gates, or any of them, at any time within the year, and to send 
others in their stead, for the remainder of the year. 

No State shall be represented in Congress by less than two, nor 
by more than seven members ; and no person shall be capable 
of being a delegate for more than three years in any term of six 
yeai's ; nor shall any person, being a delegate, be capable of 
holding any office under the United States, for which he, or 
another for his benefit receives any salary, fees, or emolument of 
any kind. 

Each State shall maintain its own delegates in any meeting of 
the States, and while they act as members of the committee of the 
States. 

28* 



330 ORIGIN OF THE CONVENTION. 

In determining questions in the United States, in Congress 
assembled, each State shall have one vote. 

Freedom of speech and debate in Congress shall not be im- 
peached or questioned in any Court, or place out of Congress, and 
the members of Congress shall be protected in their persons from 
arrests and imprisonments, during the time of their going to and 
from, and attendance on Congress, except for treason, felony or 
breach of the peace. 

Art. VI. No State without the consent of the United States 
in Congress assembled, shall send any embassy to, or receive any 
embassy from, or enter into any conference, agreement, alliance, or 
treaty with any king, prince, or State ; nor shall any person holding 
any office of profit or trust under the United States, or any of them, 
accept of any present, emolument, office, or title of any kind what- 
ever from any king, prince, or foreign State ; nor shall the United 
States in Congress assembled, or any of them, grant any title of 
nobility. 

No two or more States shall enter into any treaty, confedera- 
tion, or alliance whatever between them, without the consent of the 
United States in Congress assembled, specifying accurately the pur- 
poses for which the same is to be entered into, and how long it 
shall continue. 

No State shall lay any imposts or duties, which may interfere 
with any stipulations in treaties, entered into by the United States 
in Congress assembled, with any king, prince, or State, in pursu- 
ance of any treaties already proposed by Congress, to the courts of 
France and Spain. 

No vessels of war shall be kept up in time of peace by any State, 
except such number only, as shall be deemed necessary by the 
United States in Congress assembled, for the defence of such State, 
or its trade ; nor shall any body of forces be kept up by any State, 
in time of peace, except such number only, as in the judgment of 
the United States, in Congress assembled, shall be deemed i-equisite 
to garrison the forts necessary for the defence of such State ; but 
every State shall always keep up a well-regulated and disciplined 
militia, sufficiently armed and accoutred, and shall provide and 
have constantly ready for use, in public stores, a due number of 



ORiaiN OF THE CONVENTION. 331 

field-pieces and tents, and a proper quantity of arms, ammunition, 
and camp equipage. 

No State shall engage in any war without the consent of the 
United States in Congress assembled, unless such State be actually 
invaded by enemies, or shall have received certain advice of a 
resolution being formed by some nation of Indians to invade such 
State, and the danger is so imminent as not to admit of a delay, till 
the United States in Congress assembled can be consulted : nor 
shall any State grant commission to any ships or vessels of war, 
nor letters of marque or reprisal, except it be after a declaration of 
war by the United States in Congress assembled, and then only 
against the kingdom or State and the subjects thereof, against which 
war has been so declared, and under such regulations as shall be 
established by the United States in Congress assembled, unless such 
State be infested by pirates, in which case vessels of war may be 
fitted out for that occasion, and kept so long as the danger shall 
continue, or until the United States in Congress assembled shall 
determine otherwise. 

Art. VII. When land forces are raised by any State for the 
common defence, all officers of or under the rank of colonel, shall 
be appointed by the legislature of each State respectively by whom 
such forces shall be raised, or in such manner as such State shall 
direct, and all vacancies shall be filled up by the State which fii'st 
made the appointment. 

Art. VIII. All charges of war, and all other expenses that 
shall be incurred for the common defence or general welfare, and 
allowed by the United States in Congress assembled, shall be de- 
frayed out of a common treasury, which shall be supplied by the 
several States, in proportion to the value of all land within each 
State, gi'anted to or surveyed for any person, as such land and the 
buildings and improvements thereon shall be estimated according to 
such mode as the United States in Congress assembled, shall from 
time to time direct and appoint. The taxes for paying that pro- 
portion shall be laid and levied by the authority and direction of 
the legislatures of the several States, within the time agreed upon 
by the United States in Congress assembled. 

Art. IX. The United States in Congress assembled, shall 



332 ORIGIN OF THE CONVENTION. 

have the sole and exchisive right and power of determining on 
peace and war, except in the cases mentioned in the 6th article — 
of sending and receiving ambassadors — entering into treaties and 
alliances, provided that no treaty of commerce shall be made 
whereby the legislative power of the respective States shall be re- 
strained from imposing such imposts and duties on foreigners, as 
their own people are subjected to, or from prohibiting the exportation 
or importation of any species of goods or commodities whatsoever 
— of establishing rules for deciding in all cases, what captures on 
land or water shall be legal, and in what manner prizes taken by 
land or naval forces in the sei'vice of the United States shall be di- 
vided or appropriated — of granting letters of marque and reprisal 
in times of peace — appointing courts for the trial of piracies and 
felonies committed on the high seas, and establishing courts for re- 
ceiving and determining finally appeals in all cases of captures, 
provided that no member of Congress shall be appointed a judge 
of any of the said courts. 

The United States in Congi'ess assembled shall also be the last 
resort on appeal in all disputes and differences now subsisting, or 
that hereafter may arise between two or more States concerning 
boundary, jurisdiction, or any other cause whatever; which au- 
thority shall always be exercised in the manner following. When- 
ever the legislative or executive authority or lawful agent of any 
State in controversy with another shall present a petition to Con- 
gress, stating the matter in question and praying for a hearing, 
notice thereof shall be given by order of Congress to the legislati\e 
or executive authority of the other State in controversy, and a day 
assigned for the appearance of the parties by their lawful agents, 
who shall then be directed to appoint by joint consent, commission- 
ers or judges to constitute a court for hearing and determining the 
matter in question : but if they cannot agree, Congress shall name 
three persons out of each of the United States, and from the list of 
such persons each party shall alternately strike out one, the peti- 
tioners beginning, until the number shall be reduced to thirteen ; 
and from that number not less than seven, nor more than nine 
names as Congress shall direct, shall in the presence of Congress 
be drawn out by lot, and the persons whose names shall be so 



ORIGIN OP THE CONVENTION. 333 

drawn or any five of them, shall be commissioners or judges, to 
hear and finally determine the controversy, so always as a major 
part of the judges who shall hear the cause shall agree in the de- 
termination : and if either party shall neglect to attend at the day 
appointed, without showing reasons, which Congress shall judge 
sufficient, or being present shall refuse to strike, the Congress shall 
proceed to nominate three persons out of each State, and the secre- 
tary of Congress shall strike in behalf of such party absent or 
refusing ; and the judgment and sentence of the court to be ap- 
pointed, in the manner before prescribed, shall be final and conclu- 
sive ; and if any of the parties shall refuse to submit to the authority 
of such court, or to appear or defend their claim or cause, the court 
shall nevertheless proceed to pronounce sentence, or judgment, which 
shall in like manner be final and decisive, the judgment or sentence 
and other proceedings being in either case transmitted to Congress, 
and lodged among the acts of Congress for the security of the par- 
ties concerned ; provided that every commissioner, before he sits in 
judgment, shall take an oath to be administered by one of the 
judges of the supreme or superior court of the State, where the 
cause shall be tried, " well and truly to hear and determine the 
matter in question, according to the best of his judgment, without 
favor, affection, or hope of reward : " provided also that no State 
shall be deprived of territory for the benefit of the United States. 

All controversies concerning the private right of soil claimed 
under different grants of two or more States, whose jurisdictions as 
they may respect such lands, and the States which passed such 
grants are adjusted, the said grants or either of them being at the 
same time claimed to have originated antecedent to such settle- 
ment of jurisdiction, shall on the petition of either party to the 
Congress of the United States, be finally determined as near as 
may be in the same manner as is before prescribed for deciding 
disputes respecting territorial jurisdiction between different 
States. 

The United States in Congress assembled shall also have the 
sole and exclusive right and power of regulating the alloy and 
value of coin struck by their own authority, or by that of the 
respective States — fixing the standard of weights and measures 



334 ORIGIN OF THE CONVENTION. 

throughout the United States — regulating the trade and manag- 
ing all affairs with the Indians, not members of any of the States, 
provided that the legislative right of any State within its own 
limits be not infringed or violated — establishing or regulating 
post-offices from one State to another, throughout all the United 
States, and exacting such postage on the papers passing through 
the same as may be requisite to defray the expenses of the said 
office — appointing all officers of the land forces, in the service of 
the United States, excepting regimental officers — appointing all 
the officers of the naval forces, and commissioning all officers 
whatever in the service of the United States — making rules for 
the government and regulation of the said land and naval forces, 
and directing their operations. 

The United States in Congress assembled shall have authority 
to appoint a committee, to sit in the recess of Congress, to be 
denominated " A Committee of the States," and to consist of one 
delegate from each State ; and to appoint such other committees 
and civil officers as. may be necessary for managing the general 
affairs of the United States under their direction — to appoint one 
of their number to preside, provided that no person be allowed to 
serve in the office of president moi-e than one year in any term of 
three years ; to ascertain the necessary sums of money to be 
raised for the service of the United States, and to appropriate and 
apply the same for defraying the public expenses — to borrow 
money, or emit bills on the credit of the United States, trans- 
mitting every half year to the respective States an account of the 
sums of money so borrowed or emitted — to build and equip a 
navy — to agree upon the number of land forces, and to make 
requisitions from each State for its quota, in proportion to the 
number of white inhabitants in such State ; wbich requisition shall 
be binding, and thereupon the legislature of each State shall 
appoint the regimental officers, raise the men, and clothe, arm and 
equip them in a soldier-like manner, at the expense of the United 
States ; and the officers and men so clothed, armed and equipped, 
shall march to the place appointed, and within the time agreed 
on by the United States in Congress assembled: but if the 
United States in Congress assembled shall, on consideration of 



ORIGIN OF THE CONVENTION. 335 

circumstances judge proper that any State should not raise men, 
or should raise a smaller number than its quota, and that any 
other State should raise a greater number of men than the quota 
thereof, such extra number shall be raised, officered, clothed, 
armed and equipped, in the same manner as the quota of such 
State, unless the legislature of such State shall judge that such 
extra number cannot be safely spared out of the same, in which 
case they shall raise, officer, clothe, arm and equip, as many of such 
extra number as they judge can be safely spared. And the 
officers and men so clothed, armed and equipped, shall mai'ch to 
the place appointed, and within the time agreed on by the United 
States in Congress assembled. 

The United States in Congress assembled shall never engage in 
a war, nor grant letters of marque and reprisal in time of peace, 
nor enter into any treaties or alliances, nor coin money, nor regu- 
late the value thereof, nor ascertain the sums and expenses 
necessary for the defence and welfare of the United States, or any 
of them, nor emit bills, nor borrow money on the credit of the 
United States, nor appropriate money, nor agree upon the number 
of vessels of war, to be built or purchased, or the number of land 
or sea forces to be raised, nor appoint a commander-in-chief of the 
army or navy, unless nine States assent to the same : nor shall a 
question on any other point, except for adjourning from day to 
day be determined, unless by the votes of ii majority of the 
United States in Congress assembled. 

The Congress of the United States shall have power to adjourn 
to any time within the year, and to any place within the United 
States, so that no period of adjournment be for a longer duration 
than the space of six months, and shall publish the journal of their 
proceedings monthly, except such parts thereof relating to treaties, 
alliances or military operations, as in their judgment require 
secrecy ; and the yeas and nays of the delegates of each State on 
any question shall be entered on the journal, when it is desired by 
any delegate ; and the delegates of a State, or any of them, at his 
or their request shall be furnished with a transcript of the said 
journal, except such parts as are above excepted, to lay before the 
legislatures of the several States. 



336 ORIGIN OF THE CONVENTION. 

Art. X. The committee of the States, or any nine of them, shall 
be authorized to execute, in the recess of Congress, such of the 
powers of Congress as the United States in Congress assembled, 
by the consent of nine States, shall from time to time think expe- 
dient to vest them with ; provided that no power be delegated to 
the said committee, for the exercise of which, by the Articles of 
Confederation, the voice of nine States in the Congress of the 
United States assembled is requisite. 

Art. XL Canada acceding to this Confederation, and joining in 
the measures of the United States, shall be admitted into, and enti- 
tled to all the advantages of this Union ; but no other colony shall 
be admitted into the same, unless such admission be agreed to by 
nine States. 

Art. XII. All bills of credit emitted, moneys borrowed, and 
debts contracted by, or under the authority of Congress, before the 
assembling of the United States, in pursuance of the present Con- 
federation, shall be deemed and considered as a charge against the 
United States, for payment and satisfaction whereof the said 
United States and the public faith are hereby solemnly pledged. 

Art. XIII. Every State shall abide by the determinations of 
the United States in Congress assembled, on all questions which 
by this Confederation is submitted to them. And the Articles of 
this Confederation shall be inviolably observed by every State, 
and the union shall be perpetual ; nor shall any alteration at any 
time hereafter be made in any of them ; unless such alteration be 
agreed to in a Congress of the United States, and be afterwards 
confirmed by the legislatures of every State. 



ORIGIN OF THE CONTENTION. 337 



RESOLUTIONS OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK. 

Sunday, July 21, 1782. 

Resolved, That it appears to this legislature, after full and sol- 
emn consideration of the several matters communicated by the 
honorable the committee of Congress, relating to the present pos- 
ture of our affairs, foreign and domestic, and contained in a letter 
from the secretary for foreign affairs respecting the former, as well 
as of the representations from time to time made by the superin- 
tendent of the finances of the United States, relative to his particu- 
lar department ; that the situation of these States is in a peculiar 
manner critical, and affords the strongest reason to apprehend, 
from a continuance of the present Constitution of the continental 
government, a subversion of public credit, and consequences highly 
dangerous to the safety and independence of these States. 

Resolved, That while this legislature are convinced by the be- 
fore-mentioned communications, that, notwithstanding the gener- 
ous intentions of an ally from whom we have experienced, and 
doubtless shall still experience, all possible support, exigencies may 
arise to prevent our receiving pecuniary succors hereafter, in any 
degree proportioned to our necessities. They are also convinced, 
from facts within their own knowledge, that the provisions made 
by the respective States for carrying on the war, are not only in- 
adequate to the end, but must continue to be so, while there is an 
adherence to the principles which now direct the operation of pub- 
lic measures. 

Resolved, That it is also the opinion of this legislature, that the 
present plan instituted by Congress for the administration of their 
finances, is founded in wisdom and sound policy. That the salutary 
effects of it have already been felt in an extensive degree ; and 
that after so many violent shocks sustained by the public credit, a 
failure in this system, for want of the support which the States are 

29 



338 OEIGIN OF THE CONVENTION. 

able to give, would be productive of evils too pernicious to be 
hazai'ded. 

Resolved, That it appears to this legislature, that the present 
British ministry, with a disposition not less hostile than that of 
their predecessors, taught by experience to avoid their errors, and 
assuming the appearance of moderation, are pursuing a scheme 
calculated to conciliate in Europe, and seduce in America. That 
the economical arrangements they appear to be adopting are 
adapted to enlarging the credit of their government, and multi- 
plying its resources at the same time that they serve to confirm 
the prepossessions and confidence of the people ; and that the plan 
of a defensive war on this continent, while they direct all their at- 
tention and resources to the augmentation of their navy, is that 
which may be productive of consequences ultimately dangerous to 
the United States. 

Resolved, That it is the opinion of this legislature, that the pres- 
ent system of these States exposes the common cause to a precari- 
ous issue, and leaves us at the mercy of events over which we have 
no influence, a conduct extremely unwise in any nation, and at all 
times, and to a change of which we are impelled at this juncture, 
by reason of peculiar and irresistible weight ; and that it is the 
natural tendency of the weakness and disorders in our national 
measures, to spread diffidence and distrust among the people, and 
prepare their minds to receive the impressions the enemy wish to 
make. 

Resolved, That the general state of European affairs, as far as 
they have come to -the knowledge of this legislature, affords, in 
their opinion, reasonable ground of confidence, and assures us, that 
with judicious and vigorous exertion on our part, we may rely on 
the final attainment of our object ; but, far from justifying indif- 
ference and security, calls upon us by every motive of honor, good 
faith, and patriotism, without delay to unite in some system more 
effectual for producing energy, harmony, and consistency of meas- 
ures than that which now exists, and more capable of putting the 
common cause out of the reach of contingencies. 

Resolved, That in the opinion of this legislature, the radical 
source of most of our embarrassments, is the want of sufficient 



ORIGIN OF THE CONVENTION. 339 

power in Congress, to effectuate that ready and perfect cooperation 
of the different States, on which their immediate safety and future 
happiness depend. That experience has demonstrated the Confed- 
eration to be defective in several essential points, particularly in 
not vesting the federal government either with a power of provid- 
ing revenue for itself, or with ascertained and productive funds, 
secured by a sanction so solemn and general, as would inspire the 
fullest confidence in them, and make them a substantial basis of 
credit. That these defects ought to be without loss of time re- 
paired; the powei's of Congress extended, a solid security estab- 
lished for the payment of debts already incurred, and competent 
means provided for future credit, and for supplying the future 
demands of the war. 

Resolved, That it appears evident to this legislature, that the 
annual income of these States, admitting the best means were 
adopted for drawing out their resources, would fall far short of the 
annual expenditure ; and that there would be a large deficiency to 
be supplied on the credit of these States, whic^, if it should be 
inconvenient for those powers to afford, on whjfe friendship we 
justly rely, must be sought for from individuals, to engage whom to 
lend, satisfactory securities must be pledged for the punctual pay- 
ment of interest, and the final redemption of the principal. 

Resolved, That it appears to this legislature, that the aforegoing 
important ends can never be attained by partial deliberations of 
the States separately ; but that it is essential to the common wel- 
fare, that there should be, as soon as possible, a conference of the 
whole on the subject ; and that it would be advisable for this pur- 
pose, to propose to Congress to recommend, and to each State to 
adopt the measure of assembling a general convention of the 
States, specially authorized to revise and amend the Confedera- 
tion, reserving a right to the respective legislatures to ratify their 
determinations. 



840 ORIGIN OF THE CONVENTION. 



RESOLUTIOK OF THE STATE OF VIRGINIA. 

21sT January, 1786. 

Resolved, That Edmund Randolph, James Madison, junior, 
Walter Jones, Saint George Tucker, Meriwether Smith, David 
Ross, William Ronald, and George Mason, esquires, be appointed 
commissioners, who, or any five of whom, shall meet such commis- 
sioners as may be appointed by the other States in the Union, at a 
time and place to be agreed on, to take into consideration the trade 
of the United States ; to examine the relative situations and trade 
of the said States ; to consider how far an uniform system in their 
commercial regulations may be necessary to their common interest 
and their permaM^nt harmony ; and to report to the several States 
such an act relative to this great object, as, when unanimously rati- 
fied by them, will enable the United States in Congress assembled 
effectually to provide for the same : that the said commissioners 
shall immediately transmit to the several States copies of the pre- 
ceding resolution, with a circular letter requesting their concur- 
rence therein, and proposing a time and place for the meeting 
aforesaid. 



ORIGIN OF THE CONVENTION. 341 



REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONERS 

Wno MET AT Annapolis, Maryland, September 11, 1786. 

To the honorable the Legislatures of Virginia, Delaware, Pennsyl- 
vania, New Jersey, and New York, the commissioners from the 
said States, respectively, assembled at Annapolis, humbly beg 
leave to report : — 

That, pursuant to their several appointments, they met at An- 
napolis, in the State of Maryland, on the 11th day of September 
instant, and having proceeded to a communication of their powers, 
they found that the States of New York, Pennsylvania, and Vir- 
ginia, had, in substance, and nearly in the same terms, authorized 
their respective commissioners " to meet such commissioners as 
were or might be appointed by the other States in the Union, at 
such time and place as should be agreed upon by the said commis- 
sioners, to take into consideration the trade and commerce of the 
United States, to consider how far an uniform system in their com- 
mercial intercourse and regulation might be necessary to their com- 
mon interest and permanent harmony, and to report to the several 
States such an act relative to this great object, as when unani- 
mously ratified by them, would enable the United States in Con- 
gress assembled effectually to provide for the same." 

That the State of Delaware had given similar powers to their 
commissioners, with this difference only, that the act to be framed 
in virtue of these powers is required to be reported " to the United 
States in Congress assembled, to be agreed to by them, and con- 
firmed by the legislatures of every State." 

That the State of New Jersey had enlarged the object of their 
appointment, empowering their commissioners " to consider how 
far an uniform system in their commercial regulations and other 

29* 



342 ORIGIN OF THE CONVENTION. 

important matters might be necessary to the common interest and 
permanent harmony of the several States ; " and to report such an 
act on the subject as, when ratified by them, " would enable the 
United States in Congress assembled effectually to provide for the 
exigencies of the Union." 

That appointments of commissioners have also been made by the 
States of New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and North 
Carolina, none of whom, however, have attended ; but that no in- 
formation has been received by your commissioners of any appoint- 
ment having been made by the States of Connecticut, Maryland, 
South Carolina, or Georgia. 

That the express terms of the powers to your commissioners sup- 
posing a deputation from all the States, and having for object the 
trade and commerce of the United States, your commissioners did 
not conceive it advisable to proceed on the business of their mission 
under the circumstance of so partial and defective a representa- 
tion. 

Deeply impressed, however, with the magnitude and importance 
of the object confided to them on this occasion, your commissioners 
cannot forbear to indulge an expression of their earnest and unani- 
mous wish that speedy measures may be taken to effect a general 
meeting of the States, in a future convention for the same and such 
other purposes as the situation of public affairs may be found to 
require. 

If, in expressing this wish, or in intimating any other sentiment, 
your commissioners should seem to exceed the strict bounds of their 
appointment, they entertain a full confidence that a conduct dic- 
tated by an anxiety for the welfare of the United States will not 
fail to receive an indulgent construction. 

In this persuasion, your commissioners submit an opinion, that 
the idea of extending the powers of their deputies to other objects 
than those of commerce, which has been adopted by the State of 
New Jersey, was an improvement on the original plan, and will 
deserve to be incorporated into that of a future convention. They 
are the more naturally led to this conclusion, as, in the course of 
their reflections on the subject, they have been induced to think that 



ORiaiN OF THE CONVENTION. 343 

the power of regulating trade is of such comprehensive extent, and 
will enter so far into the general system of the federal govern- 
ment, that to give it efficacy, and to obviate questions and" doubts 
concerning its precise nature and limits, may require a correspond- 
ent adjustment of other parts of the federal system. 

That there are important defects in the system of the federal 
government, is acknowledged by the acts of all those States which 
have concurred in the present meeting ; that the defects, upon a 
closer examiilation, may be found greater and more numerous than 
even these acts imply, is at least so far probable, from the embar- 
rassments which characterize the present state of our national 
affairs, foreign and domestic, as may reasonably be supposed to 
merit a deliberate and candid discussion, in some mode which will 
unite the sentiments and cx)uncils of all the States. In the choice 
of the mode, your commissioners are of opinion that a convention 
of deputies from the different States, for the special and sole pur- 
pose of entering into this investigation, and digesting a plan for sup- 
plying such defects as may be discovered to exist, will be entitled 
to a preference, from considerations which will occur without being 
particularized. 

Your commissioners decline an enumeration of those national 
circumstances on which their opinion respecting the propriety of a 
future convention, with more enlarged powers, is founded, as it 
would be an useless intrusion of facts and observations, most of 
which have been frequently the subject of public discussion, and 
none of which can have escaped the penetration of those to whom 
they would in this instance be addressed. They are, however, of a 
nature so serious, as in the view of your commissioners, to render 
the situation of the United States delicate and critical, calling for 
an exertion of the united virtue and wisdom of all the members of 
the confederacy. 

Under this impression, your commissioners, with the most re- 
spectful deference, beg leave to suggest their unanimous conviction, 
that it may essentially tend to advance the interests of the Union, 
if the States, by whom they have been respectively delegated, 
would themselves concur, and use their endeavors to procure the 



344 



ORIGIN OF THE CONVENTION. 



concurrence of the other States in the appointment of commissioners, 
to meet at Philadelphia on the second Monday in May next, to take 
into consideration the situation of the United States, to devise such 
further provisions as shall appear to them necessary to render the 
Constitution of the federal government adequate to the exigencies 
of the Union ; and to report such an act for that purpose to the 
United States in Congress assembled, as, when agreed to by them, 
and afterwards confirmed by the legislatures of every State, will 
effectually provide for the same. 

Though your commissioners could not with propriety address 
these observations and sentiments to any but the States they have 
the honor to represent, they have nevertheless concluded, from 
motives of respect, to transmit copies of this report to the United 
States in Congress assembled, and to the executives of the other 
States. 

By order of the Commissioners. 

Dated at Annapolis, September 14, 1786. 

Resolved, That the chairman sign the aforegoing report in behalf 
of the commissioners. 

Then adjourned without day. 



NEW YORK. 

Egbert Benson, 
Alexander Hamilton. 

NEW JERSEY. 

Abra. Clark, 
"Wm. Ch. Houston, 
James Schureman. 

PENNSYLVANIA. 

Tench Coxe. 



DELAWARE. 

George Read, 
John Dickinson, 
Richard Bassett, 

VIRGINIA. 

Edmund Randolph, 
James Madison, jun. 
St. George Tucker. 



ORIGIN OF THE CONVENTION. 345 



IN THE CONGRESS OF THE CONFEDERATION. 

Wednesday, Februaky 21, 1787. 

The report of a Grand Committee, consisting of Mr. Dane, Mr 
Varnum, Mr. S. M. Mitchell, Mr. Smith, Mr. Cadwallader, Mr 
Irvine, Mr. N. Mitchell, Mr. Forrest, Mr. Grayson, Mr. Blount, 
Mr. Bull, and Mr. Few, to whom was referred a letter of 14th 
September, 1786, from J. Dickinson, written at the request of com- 
missioners from the States of Virginia, Delaware, Pennsylvania, 
New Jersey, and New York, assembled at the city of Annapolis, 
together with a copy of the report of the said commissioners to the 
legislatures of the States by whom they were appointed, being an 
order of the day, was called up, and which is contained in the fol- 
lowing resolution, namely : — 

" Congress having had under consideration the letter of John 
Dickinson, Esq., chairman of the commissioners who assembled at 
Annapolis during the last year ; also the proceedings of the said 
commissioners ; and entirely coinciding with them, as to the ineffi- 
ciency of the federal government, and the necessity of devising 
such further provisions as shall render the same adequate to the 
exigencies of the Union, do strongly recommend to the different 
legislatures to send forward delegates, to meet the proposed con- 
vention, on the second Monday in May next, at the city of Phila- 
delphia." 

The delegates for the State of New York thereupon laid before 
Congress instructions which they had received from their constitu- 
ents, and, in pursuance of the said instructions, moved to postpone 
the further consideration of the report, in order to take up the fol- 
lowing propositions, namely : — 

" That it be recommended to the States composing the Union, 



346 ORIGIN OF THE CONVENTION. 

that a convention of representatives from the said States respec- 
tively, be held at , on , for the purpose of revising the 
articles of confederation and perpetual union between the United 
States of America, and reporting to the United States in Congress 
assembled, and to the States respectively, such alterations and 
amendments of the said articles of confederation, as the repre- 
sentatives met in such convention shall judge proper and neces- 
sary to render them adequate to the preservation and support of 
the Union." 

On the question to postpone, for the purpose above-mentioned, 
the yeas and nays being required by the delegates for New- 
York, 

MassacJiusetts Mr. King, ay > 

Dane, ay j •' 

Connecticut Mr. Johnson, ay } ,. 

S. Mitchell, no f ^'''• 

New York Mr. Smith, ay ? 

Benson, ay ) •' 

New Jersey Mr. Cadwallader, ay ]( 

Clarke, no y no 

Schureman, no } 

Pennsylvania Mr. Irvine, no ) 

Meredith, ay > no 

Bingham, no ) 

Delaware . Mr. N. Mitchell, no }■* 

Maryland Mr. Forrest, no }-* 

Virginia Mr. Grayson, ay } 

Madison, ay | ^ 

Hawkins, no ^ 

S. Carolina ......*... Mr. Bull, no~l 

Kean, no 

XT t-no 

Huger, no [ 

Parker, no J 

Georgia Mr. Few, ^^ ^ rl' 

Pierce, no ^ 

So the question was lost. 

A motion was then made by the delegates for Massachusetts, to 
postpone the further consideration of the report, in order to take 
into consideration a motion which they read in their place ; this 



N. Carolina Mr. Blount, no , 

' *-no 



ORIGIN OF THE COt"TVENTIOIT. 347 

being agreed to, the motion of the delegates for Massachusetts was 
taken up, and, being amended, was agreed to, as follows : — 

Whereas there is provision in the articles of confederation 
and perpetual union, for making alterations therein, by the assent 
of a Congress of the United States, and of the legislatures of the 
several States ; and whereas experience hath evinced that there 
are defects in the present confederation, as a mean to remedy 
which several of the States, and particularly the State of New 
York, by express instructions to their delegates in Congress, have 
suggested a convention for the purposes expressed in the following 
resolution ; and such convention appearing to be the most proba- 
ble mean of establishing in these States a firm national govern- 
ment : 

Resolved, That in the opinion of Congress, it is expedient, that, 
on the second Monday in May next, a convention of delegates, 
who shall have been appointed by the several States, be held at 
Philadelphia, for the sole and express purpose of revising the Arti- 
cles of Confederation, and reporting to Congress, and the several 
legislatures, such alterations and provisions therein as shall, when 
agreed to in Congress, and confirmed by the States, render the 
Federal Constitution adequate to the exigencies of government, 
and the preservation of the Union. 



348 ORIGIN OF THE CONVENTION. 



EXTRACTS FROM THE ACTS OF THE STATES 

AUTHORIZING THE APPOINTMENT OF DELEGATES TO THE CON- 
VENTION AT PHILADELPHIA, SHOAVING THE POWERS CON- 
FERRED ON THEM. 

Virginia, passed on the 16th of October, 1786 — " To join with 
[the delegates from the other States] in devising and discussing 
all such alterations and further provisions as may be necessary to 
render the federal Constitution adequate to the exigencies of the 
Union." 

New Jersey, passed 2?^* xNovember, 1786 — "For the 
purpose of taking into consideration the state of the Union, as to 
trade and other important objects, and of devising such other pro- 
visions as shall appear to be necessary to render the Constitution 
of the federal government adequate to the exigencies thereof." 

Pennsylvania, passed December 30, 1786 — "To join in 
devising, deliberating on, and discussing all such alterations and 
further provisions as may be necessary to render the federal 
Constitution fully adequate to the exigencies of the Union." 

Delaware, passed February 23, 1787 — "To join with them 
in devising, deliberating on, and discussing, such alterations and 
further provisions as may be necessary to render the federal 
Constitution adequate to the exigencies of the Union .... so 
always, and pi-ovided, that such alterations or further provisions, 
or any of them, do not extend to that part of the fifth article of 
the confederation of the said States, finally ratified on the first 
day of March, 1781, which declares that, 'In determining ques- 
tions in the United States in Congress assembled, each State shall 
have one vote.'" 

North Carolina, passed 6th January, 1786 — "To discuss 
and decide upon the most effectual means to remove the defects 



ORIGIN OF THE CONVENTION. 349 

of the federal Union, and to procure the enlarged purposes which 
it was intended to elFeet." 

Georgia, passed February 11, 1786 — "To join in devising 
and discussing all such alterations and further provisions as may 
be necessary to render the federal Constitution adequate to the 
exigencies of the Union." 

Nkw York, passed February 28, 1787 — "For the sole and 
express purpose of revising the Articles of Confederation and 
reporting to Congress, and to the several legislatures, such altera- 
tions and provisions tlierein as shall, when agreed to in Congi-ess, 
and confirmed by the several States, render the federal Constitu- 
tion adequate to the exigencies of government, and the preser- 
vation of the Union." 

Massachusetts, passed 10th March, 1787 — "For the sole 
and express purpose of revising the Articles of Confederation." 

South Carolina, passed March 8, 1787 — "To join in 
devising and discussing all such altei'ations, clauses, articles, and 
provisions, as may be thought necessary to render the federal 
Constitution entirely adequate to the actual situation and future 
good government of the confederated States." 

Connecticut, passed May, 1787 — "To discuss upon such 
alterations and provisions, agreeable to the general principles of 
republican government, as they shall think proper, to render the 
federal Constitution adequate to the exigencies of government and 
the preservation of the Union." 

Maryland, passed May 26, 1787 — "To join with them in 
considering such alterations and further provisions as may be 
necessary to render the federal Constitution adequate to the exigen- 
cies of the Union." 

New Hampshire, passed June 27, 1787 — "To discuss and 
decide upon the most effectual means to remedy the defects of our 
federal Union, and to procure and secure the enlarged purposes 
which it was intended to effect." 

All the acts required that the proceedings of the Convention 
should be reported to the United States in Congress, and to the 
respective State legislatures, for final action. 

30 



CESSION OF THE WESTERN TERRITORY. 



The original settlements upon the portion of the American con- 
tinent, now constituting the United States, were made along the 
coast of the Atlantic Ocean. The gi-ants from the British crown 
to the companies under whose auspices the settlements were com- 
menced, were made with little regard to the actual geography of 
the country. The conceded territory was generally described as 
included between certain parallels of latitude, and commencing on 
the Atlantic Ocean, thence extending westward to the " South Sea," 
or the Pacific Ocean. Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, Vir- 
ginia, the two Carolinas, and Georgia, all claimed by virtue of such 
grants the right of soil and jurisdiction as far west as the Mississippi 
river at least. Massachusetts and Connecticut yielded to the para- 
mount right of New York and Pennsylvania to the territory within 
their appropriate limits, but insisted upon their own rights to the* 
unoccupied territory to the westward of those intervening States. 

While the interior of the continent was but little regarded and 
the eminent domain was admitted to be in the British crown, these 
claims attracted but little attention. But when the colonies had 
thrown off their allegiance to the British crown and took the atti- 
tude of sovereign and independent States, the value of these western 
possessions assumed a magnitude and importance of serious import. 
The blood and treasure of all the colonies were to be expended for 
the common defence of the sovereignty and independence of the 
respective States; and it was but just and proper that all should 
share as equally as practicable in the benefits to be attained. The 
States, whose western limits were circumscribed by the interven- 
tion of other States, and which, therefore, could have no separate 



CESSION OF THE WESTERN TERRITORY. 351 

claim to any interest in the vast and unoccupied domain to "be 
secured as one of the results of the war, demanded that this domain 
should be devoted to the purpose of contributing to the general 
fund i-equired for acquiring and defending the title to it. They 
called on the States claiming such land as being within their char- 
tered limits, to surrender their respective claims to all unoccupied 
territory lying beyond a reasonable western limit for their State 
jurisdictions, to the United States. The failure of the States 
claiming the territory, to respond to this just demand, created 
great dissatisfaction on the part of the other States. Maryland 
refused to ratify the Articles of Confederation, until the claims to 
these lands should be ceded to the United States. She insisted 
that the boundaries of the respective States, and especially those 
claiming, under their charters, the right to extend their jurisdic- 
tion to the Mississippi river, or to the " South Sea," should be as- 
certained and restricted within reasonable limits ; and that the un- 
occupied territory lying west of the proper limits of the States 
should be held, both as to pi"operty and jurisdiction, by the Con- 
gress of the United States, for the common benefit. Maryland 
presented these terms to Congress as the condition of her ratifica- 
tion of the Articles of Confederation, at the time, or soon after 
they were agreed to in that body. The following instructions of 
that State to her delegates in Congress, under date of May 21st, 
1779, clearly present the views which influenced her action. 



Instructions of the General Assembly of Maryland to George Plater, 
William Paca, William Carmichael, John Henry, James Forbes, 
and Daniel of St. Thomas Jenifer, Esqs. 

Gentlemen, — Having conferred upon you a trust of the high- 
est nature, it is evident we place great confidence in your integrity, 
abilities, and zeal to promote the general welfare of the United 
States, and the particular interest of this State, where the latter is 
not incompatible with the %'mer; but, to add greater weight to 
your proceedhigs in Congress, and take away all suspicion that the 
opinions you there deliver, and the votes you give, may be the 
mere opinions of individuals, and not resulting from your knowl- 



352 CESSION OF THE WESTERN TERRITORY. 

edge of the sense and deliberate judgment of the State you repre 
sent, we think it our duty to instruct as foUoweth on the subject of 
the confederation, — a subject in which, unfortunately, a supposed 
difference of interest has produced an almost equal division of sen- 
timents among the several States composing the Union. We say 
a supposed difference of interests ; for if local attachments and 
prejudices and the avarice and ambition of individuals, would give 
way to the dictates of a sound policy, founded on the principles of 
justice (and no other policy but what is founded on those immu- 
table principles deserves to be called sound), we flatter ourselves 
this apparent diversity of interests would soon vanish, and all the 
States would confedei'ate on terms mutually advantageous to all ; 
for they would then perceive that no other confederation than one 
so formed can be lasting. Although the pressure of immediate 
calamities, the dread of their continuance from the appearance of 
disunion, and some other peculiar circumstances, may have induced 
some States to accede to the present confederation, contrary to 
their own interests and judgments, it requires no great share of 
foresight to predict, that, when those causes cease to operate, the 
States which have thus acceded to the confederation will consider 
it as no longer binding, and will eagerly embi'ace the first occasion 
of asserting their just rights, and securing their independence. Is 
it possible that those States who are ambitiously grasping at terri- 
tories to which, in our judgment, they have not the least shadow of 
exclusive right, will use with greater moderation the increase of 
wealth and power derived from those territories when acquired, 
than what they have displayed in their endeavors to acquire them ? 
We think not. We are convinced the same spirit which hath 
prompted them to insist on a claim so extravagant, so repugnant 
to every principle of justice, so incompatible with the general wel- 
fare of all the States, will urge them on to add oppression to in- 
justice. If they should not be incited by a superiority of wealth 
and strength to oppress by open force their less wealthy and less 
powerful neighbors, yet depopulation, and consequently the im- 
poverishment of those States, will necessarily follow, which, by an 
unfair construction of the confederation, may be stripped of a 
common interest and the common benefits derivable from the 
western country. Suppose, for instance, Virginia indisputably 



CESSION OF THE WESTERN TERRITORY. 353 

possessed of the extensive and fertile country to which she has set 
up a claim, \vhat«"would be the probable consequences to Mary- 
land of such an undisturbed and undisputed possession ? They 
cannot escape the least discerning. 

Virginia, by selling on the most moderate terms a small propor- 
tion of the lands in question, would draw into her treasury vast 
sums of money, and in proportion to the sums arising from such 
sales, would be enabled to lessen her taxes. Lands comparatively 
cheap, and taxes comparatively low with the lands and taxes of an 
adjacent State, would quickly drain the State thus disadvanta- 
geously circumstanced of its most useful inhabitants ; its wealth, and 
its consequence in the scale of the confederated States would sink 
of course. A claim so injurious to more than one half, if not to 
the whole of the United States, ought to be supported by the clear- 
est evidence of the i-ight. Yet what evidences of that right have 
been produced ? What arguments alleged in support either of the 
evidence or the right ? None that we have heard of deserving a 
serious refutation. 

It has been said, that some of the delegates of a neighboring 
State have declared their opinion of the impracticability of govern- 
ing the extensive dominion claimed by that State. Hence also the 
necessity was admitted of dividing its territory, and erecting a 
new State, under the auspices and direction of the elder, from 
whom, no doubt, it would receive its form of government, to whom 
it would be bound by some alliance or confederacy, and by whose 
councils it would be influenced. Such a measure, if ever at- 
tempted, would certainly be opposed by the other States as incon- 
sistent with the letter and spirit of the proposed confederation. 
Should it take place by establishing a sub-confederacy, imperium 
in imperio, the State possessed of this extensive dominion must 
then either submit to all the inconveniences of an overgrown and 
unwieldy government, or suffer the authority of Congress to inter- 
pose, at a future time, and to lop off a part of its territory, to be 
erected into a new and free State, and admitted into a confedera- 
tion on such conditions as shall be settled by nine States. If it is 
necessary, for the happiness and tranquillity of a State thus over- 

30* 



354 CESSION OF THE WESTEEN TEERITORT. 

grown, that Congress should hereafter interfere and divide its 
territory, why is the claim to that territory now"' made, and so per- 
tinaciously insisted on ? We can suggest to ourselves but two 
motives : either the declaration of relinquishing, at some future 
period, a proportion of the country now contended for, was made 
to lull suspicion asleep, and to cover the designs of a secret ambi- 
tion, or, if the thought was seriously entertained, the lands are now 
claimed to reap an immediate profit from the sale. We are con- 
vinced, policy and justice require that a country unsettled at the 
commencement of this war, claimed by the British crown, and 
ceded to it by the treaty of Paris, if wrested from the common 
enemy by the blood and treasure of the thirteen States, should be 
considered as a common property, subject to be parcelled out by 
Congress into free, convenient, and independent goveimments, in 
such manner and at such times as the wisdom of that assembly 
shall hereafter direct. 

Thus convinced, we should betray the trust reposed in us by our 
constituents, were we to authorize you to ratify on their behalf the 
confederation, unless it be further explained. We have coolly and 
dispassionately considered the subject ; we have weighed probable 
inconveniences and hardships, against the sacrifice of just and 
essential rights ; and do instruct you not to agree to the confed- 
eration, unless an article or articles be added thereto in conformity 
with our declaration. Should we succeed in obtaining such ai'ticle 
or articles, then you are hereby fully empowered to accede to the 
confederation. 

That these our sentiments respecting our confederation may be 
more publicly known, and more explicitly and concisely declared, 
we have drawn up the annexed declaration, which we instruct you 
to lay before Congress, to have it printed, and to deliver to each 
of the delegates of the other States in Congress assembled, copies 
thereof, signed by yourselves, or by such of you as may be present 
at the time of delivery ; to the intent and purpose that the copies 
aforesaid may be communicated to our brethren of the United 
States, and the contents of the said declaration taken into their 
serious and candid consideration. 



CESSION OF THE WESTERN TERRITORY. 355 

Also we de&ire and instruct you to move, at a proper time, that 
these instructions be read to Congress by their secretary, and en- 
tered on the journals of Congress. 

We have spoken with freedom, as becomes freemen ; and we 
sincerely wish that these our representations may make such an 
impression on that assembly as to induce them to make such addi- 
tion to the Articles of Confederation as may bring about a perma- 
nent union. 

New Jersey withheld her ratification to the articles until near 
the close of 1778, on the same grounds, but finally yielded "in the 
firm reliance that the candor and justice of the several States will, 
in due time, remove as far as possible, the inequality which now 
subsists." 

The State of Delaware, in connection with her ratification of the 
Articles of Confederation in 1779, directed her delegates to present 
to Congress the following resolutions of the legislature of that 
State : — 

" Resolved, That this State thinks it necessary, for the peace and 
safety of the States to be included in the Union, that a moderate 
extent of limits should be assigned for such of those States as 
claim to the Mississippi or South Sea ; and that the United States 
in Congress assembled, should, and ought to have the power of 
fixing their western limits. 

" Resolved, That this State consider themselves justly entitled to 
a right, in common with the members of the Union, to that exten- 
sive tract of country which lies westward of the frontiers of the 
United States, the property of which was not vested in, or granted 
to, individuals at the commencement of the present war : That 
the same hath been, or may be gained from Great Britain or the 
native Indians, by the blood and treasure of all, and ought there- 
fore to be a common estate, to be granted out on terms beneficial 
to the United States." 

The increasing dissatisfaction which continued to manifest itself 
in the other States at the apparent design of a portion of the con- 
federacy to endeavor to set up and maintain a claim to the western 
territory, for their own exclusive benefit, to the exclusion of those 



356 CESSION OF THE WESTERN TERRITORY. 

who were expending their treasures and pouring out their blood in 
the struggle to defend its possession, finally induced Congress to 
take the matter into serious consideration. 

On the 30th October, 1779, by a vote of eight States in the 
affirmative to three in the negative, Congress passed the following 
resolution : — 

" Whereas the appropriation of vacant lands by the several 
States, during the continuance of the war, will, in the opinion of 
Congress, be attended with great mischiefs ; therefore, 

'■'Resolved, That it be earnestly recommended to the State of 
Virginia to reconsider their late act of assembly for opening their 
land-office ; and that it be recommended to the said State, and all 
other States similarly circumstanced, to forbear selling or issuing 
warrants for unappropriated lands, or granting the same during 
the continuance of the present war." 

Under these critical and embarrassing circumstances the State 
of New York, as she had previously done in urging the immediate 
assembling of a continental Congress on the approach of British 
aggression in 1774, and as she subsequently did in leading the way 
for the assembling of the Federal Convention in 1787, magnani- 
mously took the lead in laying her own individual interests and 
selfish ambition upon the altar of the whole country. 

On the 7th of March, 1780, the delegates from that State laid 
upon the table of Congress the following : — 

" An act to facilitate the completion of the Articles of Confedera- 
tion and perpetual Union among the United States of America. 

" Whereas nothing under divine Providence can more effectually 
contribute to the tranquillity and safety of the United States of 
America than a federal alliance, on such liberal principles as will 
give satisfaction to its respective members : And whereas the Arti- 
cles of Confederation and perpetual Union recommended by the 
honorable the Congress of the United States of America have not 
proved acceptable to all the States, it having been conceived that 
a portion of the waste and uncultivated territory within the limits 
or claims of certain States ought to be appropriated as a common 
fund for the expenses of the war : And the people of the State of 



CESSION OF THE WESTERN TEREITOET. 357 

New York being on all occasions disposed to manifest their regard 
for their sister States, and their earnest desire to promote the gen- 
eral interest and security, and more especially to accelerate the 
federal alliance, by removing, as far as it depends upon them, the 
before-mentioned impediment to its final accomplishment: 

" Be it therefore enacted, by the people of the State of New 
York, represented in Senate and Assembly, and it is hereby 
enacted by the authority of the same. That it shall and may be 
lawful to and for the delegates of this State in the honorable Con- 
gress of the United States of America, or the major part of such 
of them as shall be assembled in Congress, and they, the said dele- 
gates, or a major part of tliem, so asseni,bled, are hereby fully 
authorized and empowered, for and on behalf of this State, and by 
proper and authentic acts or instruments, to limit and restrict the 
boundaries of this State, in the western parts thereof, by such line 
or lines, and in such manner and form, as they shall judge to be 
expedient, either with respect to the jurisdiction, as well as the 
right or preemption of soil, or reserving the jurisdiction in part, or 
in the whole, over the lands which may be ceded, or relinquished, 
with respect only to the right or preemption of the soil. 

"And be it furriier enacted by the authority aforesaid, That the 
territory which may be ceded or relinquished by virtue of this act, 
either with respect to the jurisdiction, as well as the right or pre- 
emption of soil, or the right or preemption of soil only, shall be 
and enure for the use and benefit of such of the United States as 
shall become members of the federal alliance of the said States, 
and for no other use or purpose whatever. 

" And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That all 
the lands to be ceded and relinquished by virtue of this act, for the 
benefit of the United States, with respect to propei'ty, but which 
shall nevertheless remain under the jurisdiction of this State, shall 
be disposed of and appropriated in such manner only as the Con- 
gress of the said States shall direct ; and that u warrant under the 
authority of Congress for surveying and laying out any part 
thereof, shall entitle the party in wiiose favor it shall issue to cause 
the same to be surveyed and laid out and returned, according to 



358 CESSION OF THE WESTERN TERRITORY. 

the directions of such warrant ; and thereupon letters patent, 
under the great seal of this State, shall pass to the grantee for the 
estate specified in the said warrant; for which no other fee or 
reward shall be demanded or received than such as shall be allowed 
by Congress. 

" Provided always, and be it further enacted by the authority 
aforesaid, That the trust reposed by virtue of this act shall not be 
executed by the delegates of this State, unless at least three of the 
said delegates shall be present in Congress." 

Encouraged by this noble example of New York, and impressed 
with the urgent necessity of harmonizing and consolidating the 
Union, in order to secure a successful termination of the war and a 
foundation for the future peace and prosperity of the country. Con- 
gress, at their session in 1780, made further efforts to adjust the 
matter of the western lands, as will be seen from the following 
extracts from their proceedings. 

"Wednesday, September 6, 1780. 

Congress took into consideration the report of the committee to 
whom were referred the instructions of the general assembly of 
Maryland to their delegates in Congress, respecting the Articles of 
Confederation, and the declaration therein referred to ; the act of 
the legislature of New York on the same subject, and the remon- 
strance of the general assembly of Virginia ; which report was 
agreed to, and is in the words following: — 

That having duly considered the several matters to them sub- 
mitted, they conceive it unnecessary to examine into the merits or 
policy of the instructions or declarations of the general assembly 
of Maryland, or of the remonstrance of the general assembly of 
Virginia, as they involve questions, a discussion of which wa.s 
declined, on mature consideration, Avhen the Articles of Confedera- 
tion were debated ; nor in the opinion of the committee, can such 
questions be now revived with any prospect of conciliation ; that 
it appears more advisable to press upon those States which can 
remove the embarrassments respecting the western country, a lib- 
eral surrender of a portion of their territorial claims, since they 



CESSION OF THE WESTERN TERRITORY. 359 

cannot be preserved entire without endangering the stability of the 
general confederacy ; to remind them how indispensably necessary 
it is to establish the Federal Union on a fixed and permanent 
basis, and on principles acceptable to all its respective members; 
how essential to public credit and confidence, to the support of our 
army, to the vigor of our councils, and success of our measures ; 
to our tranquilHty at home, our reputation abroad, to our very 
existence as a free, sovereign, and independent people ; that they 
are fully persuaded the wisdom of the respective legislatures will 
lead them to a full and impartial consideration of a subject so 
interesting to the United States, and so necessary to the happy 
establishment of the Federal Union ; that they are confirmed in 
these expectations by a review of the before-mentioned act of the 
legislature of New York, submitted to their consideration ; that 
this act is expressly calculated to accelerate the federal alliance, 
by removing, as far as depends on that State, the impediment aris- 
ing from the western country, and for that purpose to yield up a 
portion of territorial claim for the general benefit ; Whereupon, 

Resolved, That copies of the several papers referred to the 
committee be transmitted, with a copy of the report, to the legis- 
latures of the several States, and that it be earnestly recommended 
to those States, loho have claims to the western country, to pass such 
laws, and give their delegates in Congress such powers as may 
effectually remove the only obstacle to a Jinal ratification of the 
Articles of Confederation ; and that the legislature of Maryland, 
be earnestly requested to authorize the delegates in Congress to 
subscribe the said articles. 

Tuesday, October 10, 1780. 

Resolved, That the unappropriated lands that may be ceded or 
relinquished to the United States, by any particular State, pur- 
suant to the recommendation of Congress of the 6tli day of Sep- 
tember last, shall be disposed of for the common benefit of the 
United States, and be settled and formed into distinct republican 
States, which shall become members of the Federal Union, and 
have the same rights of sovereignty, freedom, and independence, 



360 CESSION OF THE WESTERN TERRITORY. 

as the other States : that each State which shall be so formed 
shall contain a suitable extent of territory, not less than one 
hundred nor more than one hundred and fifty miles square, or as 
near thereto as circumstances will admit : that the necessary and 
reasonable expenses which any particular State shall have incurred 
since the commencement of the present war, in subduing any 
British posts, or in maintaining forts or garrisons within and for 
the defence, or in acquiring any part of the territory that may be 
ceded or relinquished to the United States, shall be reimbursed. 

That the said lands shall be granted or settled at such times, 
and under such regulations, as shall hereafter be agreed on by the 
United States, in Congress assembled, or any nine or more of 
them. 

As the result of these proceedings, Virginia, in 1784, ceded to 
the United States, the territory claimed by that State, lying north 
and west of the Ohio river, with the condition that all the boun- 
ties promised to officers of the Revolution, out of her public lands, 
should be provided for by Congress. The State of Kentucky was 
subsequently formed out of the western portion of Virginia, with 
her consent. 

The other States claiming title to portions of the western terri- 
tory, also ceded their claims to the United States. 

Compact between the Original States and the People 
AND States to be formed in the Territory North-west 
OP the Ohio River, contained in the Ordinance op 1787. 

" It is hereby ordained and declared by the authority [of Con- 
gress] that the following articles shall be considered as articles of 
compact between the original States and the people and States in 
the said territory, and for ever remain unalterable, unless by com- 
mon consent, to wit : — 

Article I. No person, demeaning himself in a peaceable and 
orderly manner, shall ever be molested on account of his mode 
of worship or religious sentiments, in the said territory. 

Art. II. The inhabitants of the said territory shall always be 
entitled to the benefits of the writ of habeas corpus, and of the trial 



CESSION OF THE WESTERN TERRITORY. 361 

by jury ; of a propoi'tionate representation of the people in the leg- 
islature, and of judicial proceedings according to the course of the 
common law. All persons shall be bailable, unless for capital 
oflFences, where the proof shall be evident, or the presumption great. 
All fines shall be moderate, and no cruel or unusual punishments 
shall be inflicted. No man shall be deprived of his liberty or prop- 
erty, but by the judgment of his peers, or the law of the land, and 
should the public exigencies make it necessary, for the common 
preservation, to take any person's property, or to demand his par- 
ticular services, full compensation shall be made for the same. And, 
in the just preservation of rights and property, it is understood and 
declared, that no law ought ever to be made, or have force in the 
said territory, that shall, in any manner whatever, interfere with, 
or affect private contracts or engagements, bona fide, and without 
fraud previously formed. 

Art. III. Religion, morality, and knowledge, being necessary to 
good government, and the happiness of mankind, schools and the 
means of education shall forever be encouraged. The utmost good 
faith shall always be observed towards the Indians ; their lands and 
property shall never be taken from them without their consent ; 
and in their property, rights, and liberty, they never shall be in- 
vaded or disturbed, unless in just and lawful wars authorized by 
Congress ; but laws founded in justice and humanity shall, from 
time to time, be made, for preventing wrongs being done to them, 
and for preserving peace and friendship with them. 

Art. IV. The said territory, and the States which may be 
formed therein, shall forever remain a part of this confederacy of 
the United States of America, subject to the Articles of Confedera- 
tion, and to such alterations therein as shall be constitutionally 
made ; and to all the acts and ordinances of the United States, in 
Congress assembled, conformable thereto. The inhabitants and 
settlers in the said territory shall be subject to pay a part of the 
federal debts, contracted or to be contracted, and a proportional 
part of tlie expenses of government, to be apportioned on them by 
Congress, according to the same common rule and measure by 
which apportionments thereof shall be made on the other States ; 
and the taxes for paying their proportion shall be laid and levied 
31 



362 CESSION OF THE "WESTERN TERRITORY 

by the authority and direction of the legislatures of tlie district or 
districts, or new States, as in the original States, within the time 
agreed upon hj the United States, in Congress assembled. The 
legislatures of those districts, or new States, shall never interfere 
with the primary disposal of the soil by the United States, in Con- 
gress assembled, nor with any regulations Congress may find nec- 
essary, for securing the title in such soil, to the bona fide pur- 
chasers. No tax shall be imposed on lands, the property of the 
United States ; and in no case shall non-resident proprietors be 
taxed higher than residents. The navigable waters leading into 
the Mississippi and St. Lawrence, and the carrying places between 
the same, shall be common highways, and forever free, as well to 
the inhabitants of the said teri'itory as to the citizens of the United 
States, and those of any other Stat(js that may be admitted into the 
confederacy, without any tax, impost, or duty therefor. 

Akt. V. There shall be formed in the said territory, not less 
than three, nor more than five States ; and the boundaries of the 
States, as soon as Virginia shall alter her act of cession, and con- 
sent to the same, shall become fixed and established as follows, to 
wit : the western State in the said territory shall be bounded by 
the Mississippi, the Ohio, and the Wabash rivers ; a direct line 
drawn from the Wabash and Post Vincents, due north, to the ter- 
ritorial line between the United States and Canada ; and by the 
said territorial line to the Lake of the Woods and Mississippi. 
The middle States shall be bounded by the said direct line, the 
Wabash, from Post Vincents to the Ohio, by the Ohio, by a direct 
line drawn due north from the mouth of the Great Miami to the 
said territorial line, and by the said territorial line. The eastern 
State shall be bounded by the last-mentioned direct line, the Ohio, 
Pennsylvania, and the said territorial line ; provided, however, and 
it is further understood and declared, that the boundaries of these 
three States shall be subject so far to be altered, that, if Congress 
shall hereafter find it expedient, they shall have authority to form 
one or two States in tliat part of the said territory which lies north 
of an east and west line drawn through the southerly bend or ex- 
treme of Laite Michigan. And wlienever any of the said States 
shall have sixty thousand free inhabitants therein, such State shall 



CESSION OF THE WESTERN TERRITORY. 363 

be admitted, by its delegates, into the Congress of the United 
States, on an equal footing with the original States, in all respects 
whatever ; and shall be at liberty to form a permanent constitution 
and State government ; provided the constitution and government, 
so to be formed, shall be republican, and in conformity to the prin- 
ciples contained in these articles ; and, so far as can be consistent 
with the general intei-est of the confederacy, such admission shall 
be allowed at an earlier period, and when there may be a less num- 
ber of free inhabitants in the State than sixty thousand. 

Art. VI. There shall be neither slavery nor involuntary servi- 
tude in the said territory, otherwise than in the punishment of 
crimes, whereof the party shall have been duly convicted ; provided, 
always, that any person escaping into the same, from whom labor 
or service is lawfully claimed in any one of the original States, such 
fugitive may be lawfully reclaimed, and conveyed to the person 
claiming his or her labor or service as aforesaid. 

Be it ordained by the authority aforesaid, That the resolutions of 
the 23d of April, 1784, relative to the subject of this ordinance, be, 
and the same are hereby, repealed, and declared null and void. 

Done by the United States, in Congress assembled, the 13th day 
of July, in the year of our Lord 1787, and of their sovereignty 
and independence the 12th. 

Charles Thomson, Secretary. 



NEW STATES 

ADMITTED INTO THE UNION SINCE THE ADOPTION OF THE 
CONSTITUTION OP THE UNITED STATES. 



VERMONT 



The territory of this State was origuially claimed as belonging 
to New Hampshire, and a large portion of the land was granted by 
the colonial governors of that jurisdiction. It was also claimed as 
being a part of the colony of New York, and on that account, it 
was never admitted as a member of the old confederation. The 
people, however, never submitted to the authority of New York, 
and resolutely maintained their independence until the 4th of 
March, 1791, when, with the assent of that State, Vermont was 
admitted into the Union, by an act of Congress passed on the 18th 
of February preceding, under her constitution adopted in 1777. 

KENTUCKY. 

This State originally formed the western portion of the State of 
Virginia. It was admitted into the Union on the 1st of June, 
1792, by virtue of an act of Congress, passed Feb. 4th, 1791. 

TENNESSEE. 

This State was formed of territory which had been ceded to the 
United States in 1789, and organized as a territory by act of May 
26, 1790. It was admitted into the Union, June 1, 1796. 
(364) 



NEW STATES. 365 



OHIO 

"Was a part of the territoiy ceded to the United States by the 
States of Virginia and Connecticut, in 1783-4. It constituted a 
part of the North-west teri'itorj, organized under the Ordinance of 
1787, and was organized into a separate jurisdiction by act of Con- 
gress of May 7, 1800. It became a member of the Union on the 
29th of November, 1802, having formed a constitution in compli- 
ance with an enabling act, of 30th April of that year. 

LOUISIANA. 

This State was formed out of a portion of the territory purchased 
from France in 1803. It was provided with a territorial organi- 
zation, by the act of 26th March, 1804, under the name of the 
territory of Orleans. By act of February 20, 1811, it was author- 
ized to form a State constitution, and was admitted by act of 8th 
April, 1812. 

INDIANA. 

The second State formed out of the North-west territory, was 
admitted into the Union by act of Congress of Dec. 11, 1816, hav- 
ing formed its constitution by authority of an act passed April 19, 
of that year. 

MISSISSIPPI. 

This State was formed out of territory ceded to the United 
States by the State of South Carolina, in 1787, and by Georgia in 
1802. It was provided with a territorial organization, by acts of 
7th April, 1798, May 10, 1800, and March 27, 1804. It was ad- 
mitted into the Union by act of Dec. 10, 1817, having formed its 
constitution by authority of the act of March 1st of that year. 

ILLINOIS. 

The third State formed out of the North-west territory, was ad- 
mitted into the Union by act of Dec. 3, 1818, having formed a 
constitution under an act of April 18, of that year. 

31* 



366 NEW STATES. 



ALABAMA. 

The western portion of the Mississippi territory was erected 
into a State, by act of December 14, 1819, under the name of 
Alabama. [See Mississippi.] 

MAINE. 

Maine, although under the jurisdiction of Massachusetts from an 
early period of its history until 1820, does not lie contiguous to it. 
The State of New Hampshire intervenes. It was erected into a 
separate State, with the concurrence of Massachusetts, and admit- 
ted into the Union by act of March 3, 1820. 

MISSOURI. 

This was the second State formed from the Louisiana purchase. 
For about a year, this portion of the country ceded by France, was 
placed under the jurisdiction of the governor and judges of the 
territory of Indiana, when a separate territorial organization was 
provided for it. On the 6th of March, 1820, Congress passed " an 
act to authorize the people of the territory of Missouri to form a 
constitution and State government, and for the admission of such 
State into the Union, and to prohibit slavery in certain territories." 
This act constituted the famous compromise of 1820. The people 
of Missouri proceeded to form their constitution, which was pre- 
sented to Congress at its succeeding session. After some difficulty 
between the two houses in regard to the terms upon which Mis- 
souri was to be admitted, Mr. Clay, on the 26th February, 1821, 
reported a resolution in the Senate, providing for the admission of 
Missouri into the Union, on a certain condition. This resolution 
passed both houses of Congress, and became a law, March 2, 1821. 
The State of Missouri accepted the condition, and became a mem- 
ber of the Union, August 10, 1821. 

ARKANSAS. 

The third State formed out of the Louisiana purchase, was or- 



NEW STATES. 367 

ganizetl as a separate territory, March 2, 1819, having previously 
constituted a part of the territory of Missouri. It was erected into 
a State by act of June 15th, 1836. No previous act had been 
passed, authorizing it to form a constitution. 

MICHIGAN 

"Was the fourth State formed from the North-west territory. It 
received its separate territorial organization by act of Jan. 11, 
1805, and was admitted into the Union, Jan. 26, 1837. 

F L O KID A. 

The territory of Florida was ceded to the United States, by 
Spain, by treaty of February 22, 1819. It received its territorial 
organization by act of Mai'ch 30, 1822, and was admitted into the 
Union, by act of March 3, 1845. 

TEXAS. 

This State was formerly one of the " United Mexican States." 
Having separated itself from that Republic and established its 
independence, a treaty was negotiated between its government and 
that of the United States, for its accession to the Union as one of 
the United States, on an equal footing with the original States. 
This treaty was rejected by the Senate, two thirds of the Senators 
not consenting to it. The following resolutions were subsequently 
introduced and passed by virtue of which Texas was admitted into 
the Union. 

A joint resolution for annexing Texas to the United States, 
approved March 1, 1845. 

JOINT RESOLUTION FOR ANNEXING TEXAS TO THE UNITED STATES. 

Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled, That Congress 
doth consent that the territory properly included within and 
rightfully belonging to the Republic of Texas may be erected into 



368 NEW STATES. 

a new State, to be called the State of Texas, with a republican form 
of government, to be adopted by the people of said republic, by 
deputies in convention assembled, with the consent of the existing 
government, in order that the same may be admitted as one of the 
States of this Union. 

Sec. 2. And be it further resolved, That the foregoing consent 
of Congress is given upon the following conditions, and with the 
following guarantees, to wit : — 

First. Said State to be formed, subject to the adjustment by 
this government of all questions of boundary that may arise with 
other governments ; and the constitution thereof, with the proper 
evidence of its adoption by the people of said Republic of Texas, 
shall be transmitted to the President of the United States, to be 
laid before Congress for its final action, on or before the first day 
of January, one thousand eight hundred and forty-six. 

Second. Said State, when admitted into the Union, after 
ceding to the United States all public edifices, fortifications, bar- 
racks, ports, and harbors, navy and navy-yards, docks, magazines, 
arms, armaments, and all other property and means pertaining to 
the public defence belonging to said Republic of Texas, shall 
retain all the public funds, debts, taxes, and dues of every kind, 
which may belong to or be due and owing said republic ; and 
shall also retain all the vacant and unappropriated lands lying 
within its limits, to be applied to the payment of the debts and 
liabilities of said Republic of Texas ; and the residue of said lands, 
after discharging said debts and liabilities, to be disposed of as 
said State may direct ; but in no event are said debts and liabili- 
ties to become a charge upon the government of the United 
States. 

Third. New States, of convenient size, not exceeding four in 
number, in addition to said State of Texas, and having sufficient 
population, may hereafter, by the consent of said State, be formed 
out of the territory thereof, which shall be entitled to admission 
under the provisions of the Federal Constitution. And such 
States as may be formed out of that portion of said territory lying 
south of thirty-six degrees thirty minutes north latitude, commonly 
known as the Missouri compromise line, shall be admitted into the 



NEW STATES. 369 

Union with or without slavery, as the people of each State asking 
admission may desire. And in such State or States as shall be 
formed out of said territory north of said Missouri compromise 
line, slavery, or involuntary servitude (except for crimes), shall 
be prohibited. 

Sec. o. Aiid be it further resolved, That if the President of the 
United States shall, in his judgment and discretion, deem it most 
advisable, instead of proceeding to submit the foregoing resolution 
to the Republic of Texas, as an overture on the part of the 
United States, for admission, to negotiate with that republic; then, 

JBe it resolved, That a State, to be formed out of the present 
Republic of Texas, with suitable extent and boundaries, and with 
two representatives in Congress, until the next apportionment of 
representation, shall be admitted into the Union, by virtue of this 
act, on an equal footing with the existing States, as soon as the 
terms and conditions of such admission, and the cession of the 
remaining Texan territory to the United States, shall be agreed 
upon by the governments of Texas and the United States : 
That the sum of one hundred thousand dollars be, and the same is 
hereby, appropriated to defray the expenses of missions and 
negotiations, to agree upon the terms of said admission and cession, 
either by treaty to be submitted to the Senate, or by articles to be 
submitted to the two houses of Congress, as the Pi'esident may 
direct. 

Approved March 1, 1845. 

A joint resolution for the admission of the State of Texas into 
the Union, approved December, 29, 1845. 



JOINT RESOLUTION FOK THE ADSIISSION OF THE STATE OF TEXAS INTO 
THE UNION. » 

Whereas the Congress of the United States, by a joint resolution 
approved March the first, eighteen hundred and forty-five, did 
consent that the territory properly included within and rightfully 
belonging to the Republic of Texas might be erected into a new 
State, to be called the State of Texas, with a republican form of 
government, to be adopted by the people of said republic, by 



370 NEW STATES. 

deputies in convention assembled, with the consent of the existing 
government, in order that the same might be admitted as one of 
the States of the Union ; which consent of Congress was given 
upon certain conditions specified in the first and second sections 
of said joint resolution : and whereas the people of the said 
Republic of Texas, by deputies in convention assembjed, with the 
consent of the existing government, did adopt a constitution, and 
erect a new State, with a republican form of government, and, in 
the name of the people of Texas, and by their authority, did ordain 
and declare that they assented to and accepted the proposals, 
conditions, and guarantees contained in said first and second 
sections of said resolution : and whereas the said Constitution, and 
the proper evidence of its adoption by the people of the Republic 
of Texas, have been transmitted to the President of the United 
States, and laid before Congress, in conformity to the provisions 
of said joint resolution : Therefore, 

Resolved hy the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled, That the State 
of Texas shall be one, and is hereby declared to be one, of the 
United States of America, and admitted into the Union on an 
equal footing with the original States in all respects whatever. 

Sec. 2. And he it further resolved. That until the Represent- 
atives in Congress shall be apportioned according to an actual 
enumeration of the inhabitants of the United States, the State of 
Texas shall be entitled to choose two representatives. 

Approved December 29, 1845. 

wi s C ON S IN 

Was organized as a territory by act of April 20, 1836; author- 
ized to form a State government by act of 6th August, 1846, and 
admitted into the Union by act of March 3, 1847. 

IOWA 

Received a territorial organization by act of June 12, 1838, and 
was admitted into the Union, in connection with Florida, by act of 
March 3, 1845. 



NEW STATES. 371 



CALIFORNIA, 

Formed out of the territory acquired from Mexico, by the 
treaty of 2d February, 1848, was admitted into the Union by act 
of September 9, 1850. 

MINNESOTA 

Was organized as a territory by act of 3d March, 1849, and 
admitted into the Union by act of May 11, 1858. 

OREGON 

"Was organized as a territory by act of 14th August, 1848, and 
admitted into the Union by act of February 14, 1859. 



TEERITORIES. 

NEW MEXICO 

AND 

UTAH 



Were organized from territory acquired from Mexico, by act 
of 9th September, 1850. 



KANSAS 

AND 

NEBR AS KA 



Were organized from territory acquired from France, by the 
Louisiana purchase, by act of 22d May, 1854. 



WASH IN G TO N 



Is that portion of Oregon Territory not embraced in the State of 
Oregon. Each territory is allowed one delegate in Congress, who 
has a seat in the House of Representatives, with the right to intro- 



372 NEW STATES. 

duce bills and motions, and to speak upon any subject under de- 
bate in the House, but without the right to vote on any question. 
He receives the same compensation and emoluments as a member 
of Con.o;ress. 



DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA. 

The framers of the Constitution of the United States regarded 
it as an important object that the general government should have 
a fixed and permanent location, and that its jurisdiction over the 
territory assigned to that purpose, should be exclusive, and secure 
from the interposition of any conflicting authority. For the at- 
tainment of this purpose, they inserted in the Constitution the fol- 
lowing provision : " Congress shall have power to exercise exclu- 
sive legislation in all cases whatsoever, over such disti'ict (not ex- 
ceeding ten miles square) as may, by cession of particular States, 
and the acceptance of Congress, become the seat of the govern- 
ment of the United States." 

The subject of fixing a permanent location for the seat of gov- 
ernment had been several times agitated in Congress prior to the 
adoption of the Constitution. 

In 1784, Congress passed a resolution for the erection of build- 
ings for the permanent use of Congress and the public officers, near 
the falls of the Delaware, but it failed to be carried into effect. 
On the lOth of May, 1787, Mr. Lee of Virginia, moved in 
Congress, a resolution for fixing the permanent seat of the federal 
government at Georgetown, on the Potomac River (adjoining the 
present site of Washington), and for the adjournment of Congress 
to that place as soon as buildings could be erected. The motion 
was lost. 

On the assembling of Congress in the city of New York, under 
the new Constitution, Mr. White of Virginia, presented to the 
House of Repi-esentatives a resolution of the Virginia legislature, 
offering to the United States ten miles square of the territory of 
that State, for the seat of the federal government. Mr. Seney of 
Maryland, also laid before Congress, an act of that State, offering 



NEW STATES. 373 

ten miles square of its territory for the same purpose. Numerous 
memorials and petitions were also offered, from citizens of Penn- 
sylvania, New Jersey, and Maryland, for the selection of the 
location for the government in their respective States. On the 5th 
of September, 1789, a bill passed the House of Representatives 
" to fix the permanent seat of the government of the United 
States at some convenient place on the banks of the Susquehanna, 
in the State of Pennsylvania." On the introduction of this bill, 
much feeling was manifested by the southern members, and par- 
ticularly by those from Virginia, who contended that the banks of 
the Potomac was the most suitable location. Mr. Madison 
expressed a doubt whether Virginia would have become a party to 
the Constitution, if they could have foreseen that the government 
would be located so far north. The bill passed the House of 
Representatives by a vote of thirty-one to seventeen. It was sent 
to the Senate, and there amended by changing the location from 
" the banks of the Susquehanna " to Gerniantown, near Phila- 
delphia. This amendment was agreed to in the House of Repre- 
sentatives, with an amendment, providing that the laws of Penn- 
sylvania should continue in force in said district until Congress 
should otherwise direct. This rendered it necessary that the bill 
should go again to the Senate, where it was postponed until the 
next session. Germantovvn, Pennsylvania, was therefore, actually 
agreed upon, by both houses of Congress, as the permanent seat 
of the federal government, and the bill failed to become a law, 
only by a delay brought about by parliamentary management. 

At the next session of Congress, Mr. Smith, of Maryland, pro- 
posed Baltimore as the location, and as an inducement, stated that 
the citizens of that place would raise twenty or thirty thousand 
dollars, as a contribution towards the erection of the public 
buildings. 

In the mean time the legislature of Virginia, on the 3d of 
December, 1789, passed an act, ceding to Congress a district for 
the location of the general government, within the limits of that 
State ; and called on the State of Maryland to cooperate with them 
in an effort to procure the location to be fixed on the banks of the 
Potomac. In answer to this appeal, Maryland passed a resolution, 

32 



374 NEW STATES. 

offering to cede territory and to furnish seventy-two thousand 
dollars towards the erection of the public buildings. Virginia 
offered to advance one hundred and twenty thousand dollars for 
the same purpose. 

On the 28th June, 1790, a bill passed the Senate " to fix the 
permanent seat of Congress and the government of the United 
States "...." on the river Potomac, at some place between the 
mouths of the eastern branch and the Connogocheque." When this 
bill reached the House of Representatives, it produced great 
excitement. A decided majority of the members had already 
expressed their preference for a more noi'thern location. But at 
this particular juncture, another absorbing question, to wit, the 
funding of the revolutionary State debts, also made its appearance 
in the House. This measure was generally favored by the eastern 
members and opposed by the South. In an interview between 
Mr. Hamilton and Mr. Jefferson (both then members of General 
Washington's cabinet), on the dangers of secession and disunion 
in case of the final rejection of the funding system. Colonel 
Hamilton urged it upon Mr. Jefferson to appeal to the judgment 
and discretion of his friends to aid in the passage of the latter 
measure. Mr. Jefierson replied, that he would invite another 
friend or two to meet Colonel Hamilton at dinner the next day, 
and he thought it impossible that reasonable men, consulting 
together coolly, could fail, by some mutual sacrifices of opinion, to 
'"''form a compromise, which loas to save the Union" The consul- 
tation took place, and it was finally agreed, that, whatever impor- 
tance might be attached to the rejection of the funding bill, the 
preservation of the Union and of harmony among the States was 
more important. Mr. Jefferson's friends consented, therefore, to 
change their votes on that measure ; but as " it would be a very 
bitter pill," they thought some concomitant measure should be 
adopted to " sweeten it a little to them." It was suggested, that there 
was a proposition pending to fix the seat of government either at 
Germantown, near Philadelphia, or at Georgetown, on the Po- 
tomac ; and it was thought that by giving it to Philadelphia for 
ten years, and to Georgetown permanently afterwards, this might, 
as an anodyne, calm, in some degree, the hostility to the other 



NEW STATES. . 375 

measure. With this understanding, two of the Virginia members, 
from the Potomac districts, White and Lee, agreed to change their 
votes in favor of tlie funding bill, which would secure its passage ; 
and' Colonel Hamilton undertook to procure votes enough from his 
northern friends to secure the passage of the bill for fixing the 
seat of government on the banks of the Potomac. The compro- 
mise was carried out in good faith, — the State debts were assumed 
and funded by the general government, and the District of Colum- 
bia became the seat of government of the United States. 

Congress accepted the ten miles square, lying on both sides of 
the Potomac River, which is the dividing line between the States 
of Maryland and Virginia, one half of the territory being taken 
from each State. The cities of Alexandria, in Virginia, and 
Georgetown, Maryland, were both included in the cession. The 
city of Washington is built on the Maryland side of the Potomac, 
which separates it from Alexandria, and a small stream, called 
Rock Creek, divides it from Georgetown. 

The particular site of the Federal city was selected by Presi- 
dent Washington ; and it was laid out, and the streets, avenues, 
and the public squares, and the locations of the public buildings, 
were fixed and arranged under his direction. The capitol stands 
upon elevated ground in the eastern part of the city, and is sur- 
rounded by a highly cultivated park of about twenty acres in 
extent. The recent extension of the capitol is supposed to render 
a corresponding extension of the park necessary, and Congress 
has taken steps with the view of adding several acres to the 
grounds, by the purchase of adjacent squares. The executive 
mansion is located about one mile and a half west of the capitol ; 
and Pennsylvania Avenue, the principal promenade and thorough- 
fare of the city, runs in a direct line from one to the other. 

By an act approved February 27, 1801, Congress assumed 
exclusive jurisdiction over the District of Columbia, in accordance 
with the Constitution. That portion of the District which was 
ceded by Virginia, has since been receded to that State, so that 
the District now embraces only fifty square miles, all of which 
was originally a part of Maryland. 



ORGANIZATION 



THE GENERAL GOVERNMENT 



STATE DEPARTMENT. 

CREATED 27th jult, 1779. 

SECRETARY OF STATE. 

" There shall be an executive department, to be denominated 
the Department of Foreign Affairs ; and there shall be a principal 
officer therein, to be called the Secretary for the Department of 
Foreign Affiiirs, Avho shall perform and execute such duties as shall, 
from time to time, be enjoined on or intrusted to him by the Presi- 
dent of the United States, agreeably to the Constitution, relative to 
corresj)ondences, commissions or instructions to or with public 
ministers or consuls from the United States, or to negotiations with 
public ministers from foreign States or princes, or to memorials or 
other applications from foreign public ministers or other foreigners, 
or to such other matters respecting foreign affairs, as the President 
of the United States shall assign to the said department ; and fur- 
thermore, the said principal officer shall conduct tlie business of 
the said department in such manner as the President of the Uni- 
ted States shall, from time to time, order or instruct." Act of July 
27, 1779. 

"The department of foreign affairs shall hereafter be denomi- 
nated the Department of State, and the principal officer therein 
shall hereafter be called the Secretary of State." Act of Sept. 15, 
1789. 

(376) 



TREASURY DEPARTMENT. 377 



ASSISTANT SECRETARY OP STATE. 

" An officer shall be appointed in the department of State, to be 
called the assistant Secretary of State, . . . who shall perform all 
such duties in the office of the Secretary of State, belonging to that 
department, as shall be prescribed by the Secretary of State, or as 
may be required by law." Act of 3farch 3, 1853. 

The salary of the Secretary is $8,000, — Assistant Secretary, 
$3,000 per annum. 

CLERKS. 

The whole permanent clerical force allowed to the Department 
of State, consists of — 

3 clerks of class 1, salary $1,200 per annum. 
3 " " " 2, " 1,400 « « 
8 " " " 3, " 1,600 " " 
8 « " " 4, " 1,800 " « 
1 chief clerk, " 2,200 « " 

This department has the custody of the records, books, and 
papers of the department of foreign affairs under the confederation, 
and of the originals of all laws passed by Congress. 

An annual appropriation of about eighty-five thousand dollars is 
required for the salaries and contingent expenses of the State 
Department. 



TREASURY DEPARTMENT. 

ESTABLISHED SEPT. 2, 1779. 

" There shall be a Department of Treasury, in which shall be 
the following officers, namely, a Secretary of the Treasury, to be 
deemed head of the department, a comptroller, an auditor, a treas- 
urer, a register, and an assistant to the Secretary of the Treasury, 
■which assistant shall be appointed by the said secretary." Act of 
Sept. 2, 1789. 

The office of assistant secretary was abolished, but subsequently 
reestablished, to be appointed by the President and Senate. 

32* 



378 ORGANIZATION OF THE GENERAL GOVERNMENT. 



ORGANIZATION OF THE DEPARTMENT. 

There are now authorized by law and employed in the office of 
the secretary and the several bureaus and offices attached to the 
department in Washington, the following officers : — 

Secretary of the Treasury, . salary $8,000 per annum. 



Assistant Secretary of the Treasury, 


a 


3,000 


(( 


2 Comptrollers, .... 


a 


3,000 


each. 


6 Auditors, ..... 


a 


3,000 


(( 


Register of the Treasury, 


a 


3,000 




Commissioner of Customs, 


li 


3,000 




Treasurer of the United States, 


a 


3,000 




Chief Clerk of the Department, 


ii 


2,200 




13 Chief Clerks of Bureau, 


ii 


2,000 


each. 


3 Disbursing Clerks, . 


a 


2,000 


li 


12 Clerks (4th class). 


li 


1,800 


11 


104 Clerks (3d class), . 


(C 


1,600 


li 


155 Clerks (2d class), 


li 


1,400 


ii 


61 Clerks (1st class), . 


li 


1,200 


a 



The annual appropriation for the payment of the salaries of the 
officers and the contingent expenses of this department, amounts to 
something more than seven hundred thousand dollars. 



DUTIES OP THE SECRETARY. 

" To decide on the forms of keeping and stating accounts and 
making returns ; and to grant, under the limitations herein estab- 
lished, or to be hereafter provided, all warrants for moneys to be 
issued from the treasury in pursuance of appropriations by law, 
.... and generally to perform all such services relative to the 
finances as he shall be directed to perform." 1 Stat, at Large, 65." 

" The secretary of the treasury shall direct the superintendence 
of the collection of the duties on imports and tonnage, as he shall 
judge best." 1 Stat. 280. 

" It shall be the duty of the secretary of the treasury to digest, 
prepare, and lay before Congress at the commencement of every 



TREASURY DEPARTMENT. 379 

session, a report on the subject of finance, containing estimates of 
the public revenue and public expenditures, and plans for improv- 
ing or increasing the revenues from time to time, for the purpose 
of giving information to Congress in adopting modes of raising the 
money requisite to meet the public expenditures." 2 Stat, at 
Large, 79. 

DUTIES OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY. 

He " shall examine all letters, contracts, and warrants prepared 
for the signature of the secretary of the treasury and shall per- 
form all other such duties in the office of the secretary of the 
treasury, now performed by some of the clerks, as may be de- 
volved on him by the secretary of the treasury." 9 Stat, at 
Large, 396. 

DUTIES OF COMPTROLLERS. 

" It shall be the duty of the first comptroller to examine all 
accounts settled by the first and fifth auditors, and certify the 
balances arising thereon to the register ; to countersign all war- 
rants drawn by the secretary of the treasury, which shall be 
warranted by law ; to report to the secretary, the official forms to 
be issued in the different offices for collecting the public revenue, 
and the manner and form of keeping and stating the accounts of 
the several persons employed therein ; he shall also superintend 
the preservation of the public accounts subject to his revision, and 
provide for the regular payment of all moneys which may be 
collected." 3 Stat, at Large, 367. 

" It shall be the duty of the first comptroller to superintend the 
recovery of all debts to the United States ; to direct suits and 
legal proceedings and to take all such measures as may be author- 
ized by the laws, to enforce prompt payments of all debts to the 
United States." 

It is also his duty to report to Congress annually, the names of 
defaulters and cases requiring equitable relief. 

" It shall be the duty of the second comptroller to examine all 
accounts settled by the second, third, and fourth auditors, and 
certify the balances arising thereon to the secretary of the depart- 



380 ORGANIZATION OP THE GENERAL GOVERNMENT. 

ment in which the expenditure has been incurred ; to countersign 
all warrants drawn bj the secretaries of the war and navy depart- 
ments, which shall be warranted by law ; to report to the said 
secretaries the official forms to be issued in the different offices for 
disbursing the public money in those departments, and the manner 
and form of keeping and stating the accounts of the persons em- 
ployed therein ; and it shall also be his duty to superintend the 
preservation of the public accounts subject to his revision." 3 
Stat, at Large, 367. 

COMMISSIONEK OF CUSTOMS, 

" Shall perform all the acts and exercise all the powers, now 
devolved by law on the first comptroller of the treasury relating to 
the receipt from customs and the accounts of collectors and other 
officers of the customs or connected therewith, to report to the 
secretary the official forms of all jsapers to be used in the different 
offices for collecting the public revenue." 9 Stat, at Large, 396. 

TREASURER. 

" It shall be the duty of the treasurer to receive and keep the 
moneys of the United States, and to disburse the same upon 
warrants drawn by the secretary of the treasury, countersigned by 
the comptroller, recorded by the register, and not otherwise." 1 
Stat, at Large, 66. 

AUDITORS. 

" It shall be the duty of the auditor to receive all public accounts, 
and, after examination, to certify the balance and transmit the 
accounts with the vouchers and certificate, to the comptroller for 
his decision thereon ; provided, that if any person whose account 
shall be so audited, be dissatisfied therewith, he may, within six 
months, appeal to the comptroller against such settlement." 1 
Stat. 66. 

Four additional auditors and one additional comptroller, were 
subsequently authorized, and it was made the " duty of the first 
auditor to receive all accounts accruing in the treasury department, 



TREASURY DEPARTMENT. 381 

and after examination to certify the balance and transmit the 
accounts, with the vouchers and certificate, to the first comptroller 
for his decision thereon. 

" It shall be the duty of the second auditor to receive all ac- 
counts relative to the pay and clothing of the army, the subsistence 
of officers, bounties and pi'emiums, military and hospital stores, and 
the contingent expenses of the war department. 

" It shall be the duty of the third auditor to receive all accounts 
relative to the subsistence of the army, the quartermaster's de- 
partment, and generally all accounts of the war department, other 
than those provided for. 

" And it shall be the duty of the fourth auditor to receive all 
accounts arising in the navy department or relative thereto ; and 
the second, third, and fourth auditors, aforesaid, shall examine the 
accounts respectively, and certify the balance, and transmit the 
accounts, with the vouchers and certificate, to the second comp- 
troller for his decision thereon. 

"And it shall be the duty of the fifth auditor to receive all 
accounts accruing in, or relative to, the department of State .... 
and those arising out of Indian affairs, and examine," &c. 3 Stat. 
366. 

The auditors are the final custodians of the settled accounts 
and vouchers, and are required to report annually to the secretary 
of the treasury. 

'• There shall be appointed by the President, with the consent of 
the Senate, an auditor of the treasury for the post-office depart- 
ment, whose duty it shall be to receive all accounts arising in said 
departments, or relative thereto, to audit and settle the same and 
certify their balances to the postmaster-general ; provided, that if 
either the po>tmaster-general, or any person whose account shall 
be settled, be dissatisfied therewith, he may, within twelve months, 
appeal to the first comptroller of the treasury, whose decision shall 
be final and conclusive. 

'' The said auditor shall report to the postmaster-general, when 
required, the official forms of papers to be used by postmasters and 
other officers or agents of the department concerned in its receipts 
and payments, and the manner and form of keeping and stating its 



382 ORaANIZATION OF THE GENERAL GOVERNMENT. 

accounts He shall close the accounts of the department 

quarterly, and transmit to the secretary of the treasury, quarterly 
statements of its receipts and expenditures." 5 Stat, at Large, 80. 

THE REGISTER OF THE TREASURY. 

" It shall be the duty of the register to keep all accounts of the 
receipts and expenditures of the public money, and of all debts due 
to or from the United States ; ... to record all warrants for the 
receipt or payment of moneys at the treasury, certify the same 
thereon, and to transmit to the secretary of the treasury copies of 
the certificates of balances of accounts adjusted as is herein di- 
rected." 1 Statutes at Large, 67. 

THE SOLICITOR OF THE TREASURY. 

" There shall be appointed by the President, &c., some suitable 
person, learned in the law, to be solicitor of the treasury, and that 
all and singular of the powers and duties which are by law vested 
in and required from the agent of the treasury of the United 
States, shall be transferred to, vested in, and required from the 
said solicitor of the treasury." [To direct and superintend all 
orders, suits, and proceedings in law or equity, for the recovery of 
money, chattels, lands, &c., in the name of the United States. 
Stat. 592.] 4 Statutes at Large, 414. 



DEPAETMENT OF THE INTEEIOE. 

Established Maech 3, 1849. 

"There shall be created a new executive department, to be 
called the Department of the Interior ; the head of which depart- 
ment shall be called the Secretary of the Interior, who shall be 
appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of 
the Senate, and who shall hold his office by the same tenure, and 
receive the same salary as the secretaries of the other executive 



DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR. 



383 



departments, and who shall perform all the duties assigned to him 
by this act." 9 Stat, at Large, 395. 

To the department of the interior is assigned the supervisory 
and appellate power over the following bureaus, to wit : — 

The Patent office ; 

The General Land office ; 

The office of Indian Affairs ; 

The Pension office ; 

The office of Public Buildings ; 

and the supervisory power over the accounts of clerks, marshals, 
and other officers of the courts of the United States ; over the 
lead and other mines of the United States ; and over the inspector 
and wardens of the penitentiary of the District of Columbia. 



ORGANIZATION OF THE DEPARTMENT. 

Secretary of the Interior, salary . 
Chief Clerk 

BUKEAUS. 

Commissioner of General Land office . 

Commissioner of Pensions 

Commissioner of Indian Affairs • 

Commissioner of Patents 

Commissioner of Public Buildings 
4 Chief Clerks of Bureaus . 
3 Principal Clerks in General Land office 
15 Clerks (class 4) . . . . 

59 « (class 3) 

88 " (class 2) . . . . 

50 " (class 1) 

12 Chief Examiners (Patent office) 

12 Assistant " « « . . 

The annual appropriations required for the payment of the 
salaries and contingent expenses of this department amount to 
about $660,000. 



$8,000 




2,200 




SALARIES. 




$3,000 




3,000 




3,000 




3,000 




2,000 




2,000 each 


1,800 




1,800 




1,600 




1,400 




1,200 




2,500 




1,800 





384 ORGANIZATION OF THE GENERAL GOVERNMENT. 



WAR DEPARTMENT. 

Created August 7, 1779. 

" There shall be an executive department to be denominated the 
Department of War ; and there shall be a principal officer therein, 
to be called the Secretary for the Department of War, who shall 
perform and execute such duties as shall, from time to time, be 
enjoined on or intrusted to him by the President of the United 
States, agreeably to the Constitution, relative to military commis- 
sions or to the land-forces . . . warlike stores of the United States, 
or to such other matters respecting military . . . affairs, as the 
President of the United States shall assign to the said depart- 
ment . . . and furthermore the said principal officer shall conduct 
the business of the said department, in such manner as the Presi- 
dent of the United States shall, from time to time, order or 
instruct." 1 Stat, at Large, 49. 

" The secretary for the war department shall be and he is 
hereby authorized and directed to define and prescribe the species 
as well as the amount of supplies to be respectively purchased by 
the commissary-general's and the quartermaster-general's depart- 
ments, and the respective duties and powers of the said depart- 
ments respecting such purchases ; and also to adopt and prescribe 
general regulations for the transportation, &c. And to fix and 
make reasonable allowances for the store-rent, storage, and salary 
of store-keepers necessary for the safe-keeping of all military 
stores and supplies." 2 Stat, at Large, 817. 



ORGANIZATION OF THE DEPARTMENT. 

Secretary of War, salary . . . $8,000 per annum. 
Chief Clerk 2,200 " « 



NAVY DEPAETMENT. 385 



all paid as officers of 
the army. 



Adjutant-General, 

Quartermaster-General, 

Commissary-General, 

Chief Engineer, 

S urgeon- General, 

Colonel of Ordnance, 

Colonel of Topographical Engineers, 
12 Clerks (class 4), salary . . . $1,800 each per annum. 
11 " (class 3), " . . 1,600 « " " ' 

26 " (class 2), «... 1,400 " " " 
15 " (class 1), " . 1,200 " " " 

The annual appropriation for the support of the department 
(exclusive of the pay of the heads of the bureaus), is about 
$125,000. 



NAVY DEPARTMENT. 



Established Apkil 30, 1798. 



" There shall be an executive department, under the denomina- 
tion of the Department of the Navy, the chief officer of which shall 
be called the Secretary of the Navy, whose duty it shall be to exe- 
cute such orders as he shall receive from the President of the 
United States, relative to the procurement of naval stores and 
materials, and the construction, armament, equipment and employ- 
ment of vessels of war, as well as all other matters connected with 
the naval establishment of the United States." 1 Stat, at Large, 
553. 

" There shall be attached to the navy department the following 
bureaus, namely : 

" I. A bureau of yards and docks. 

" II. A bureau of construction, equipment, and repairs. 

" III. A bureau of provisions and clothing. 
33 



386 ORGANIZATION OF THE GENERAL GOVERNMENT. 

" IV. A bureau of ordnance and hydrography. 

" V. A bureau of medicine and surgery. 

" The President of the United States by and with the advice and 
consent of the Senate, shall appoint from the captains in the naval 
service, a chief for each of the bureaus of navy-yards and docks, 
and of ordnance and hydrography, who shall each receive a salary 
of three thousand five hundred dollars per annum, in lieu of all 
other compensation whatever in the naval service. And shall in 
like manner appoint a chief of the bureau of construction, equip- 
ment and repairs, who shall be a skilful naval constructor ; who 
shall receive for his services three thousand dollars per annum ; 
and shall also appoint a chief of the bureau of provision and cloth- 
ing — a purser of the navy of the United States of not less than 
ten years standing, . . . receiving for his services no compensa- 
tion except his highest service pay as purser." 5 Stat. 579, and 
9 Stat. 290. 

" And shall in like manner appoint from the surgeons of the 
navy, a chief of the bureau of medicine and surgery, who shall re- 
ceive for his services two thousand five hundred dollars per 
annum." 9 Stat. 290. 

" When a captain of the navy shall be the chief of the bureau 
[of construction, &c.], he shall receive pay to which he would be 
entitled if upon other duty. 

" The secretary of the navy shall assign and distribute among 
the said bureaus such of the duties of the navy department as he 
shall judge to be expedient and proper. And the duties of said 
bureaus shall be performed under the authority of the secretary of 
the navy ; and their orders shall be considered as emanating from 
him, and shall have full force and effect as such." 9 Stat, at Large, 
579. 

The secretary of the navy is required to make an annual report 
of the expenditures and transactions of the department to Congress. 



ORGANIZATION OF THE DEPARTMENT. 

Secretary of the Navy, salary $8,000 per annum. 
Chief Clerk, salary $2,200 per annum. 



POST-OFFICE DEPARTMENT. 387 

BUKEATJS. 

Chief of bureau of yards and docks, salary $3,500 per annum. 
« « " " construction, &c. " 3,000 " " 
" " " " provisions and clothing [pay as purser]. 
" " " " ordnance and hydrography, $3,500 per annum. 
" " " " medicine and surgery, $2,500 per annum. 
6 Clerks (class 4), salary $1,800 each per annum. 
6 Clerks (class 3), " 1,600 « " " 

25 Clerks (class 2), " 1,400 " " " 

2 Clerks (class 1), « 1,200 " " " 

The annual appropriation for the support of the department is 
about $110,000. 



POST-OFFICE DEPARTMENT. 

Established September, 1789. 

" There shall be established at the seat of the government of 
the United States, a general post-office, under the direction of the 
postmaster-general. He shall establish post-offices and appoint 
postmasters at all such places as shall seem to him expedient, on 
the post-roads that are or may be established by law." 4 Stat. 
102. 

" There shall be appointed by the President of the United 
States, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, a deputy- 
postmaster for each post-office, at which the commissions allowed 
to the postmaster amounted to $1,000 or upwards in the year 
ending 30th June, 1835, or which may in any subsequent year, 
terminating on the 30th day of June, amount to or exceed that 
sum ; who shall hold his office for the term of four years, unless 
sooner removed by the President." 5 Stat. 84. 

" He (the postmaster-general) shall give his assistants, the 
postmasters, and all other persons whom he shall employ or who 
may be employed in any of the departments of the general post- 



388 ORGANIZATION OF THE GENERAL GOVERNMENT. 

office, instructions relative to their duty. He shall provide for the 
carriage of the mails on all post-roads, that are or may be estab- 
lished by law, and as often as he, having regard to the produc- 
tiveness thereof, and other circumstances, shall think proper. He 
may direct the rout;e or road, where there are more than one, 
between places designated by law, for a post-road, which route 
shall be considered the post-road. He shall obtain from the 
postmasters, their accounts and vouchers for their receipts and 
expenditures, once in three months, or oftener, with the balance 
thereon arising, in favor of the general post-office. He shall pay 
all expenses which may arise in conducting the post-oflBce, and in 
the conveyance of the mail, and all other necessary expenses 
arising on the collection of the revenue, and management of the 
general post-office. He shall prosecute offences against the post- 
office establishment. PTe shall once in three months, render to the 
secretary of the treasuiy, a quarterly account of all the receipts 
and expenditures in tlie said department, to be adjusted and 
settled as other public accounts. He shall also superintend the 
business of the department in all the duties that are or may be 
assigned to it. Provided, that in case of the death, resignation, 
or removal from office of the postmaster-general, all his duties 
shall be performed by his senior assistant (the first assistant 
postmaster-general), until a successor shall be appointed, and 
arrive at the general post-office, to perform the business." 4 
Stat. 102. 

ORGANIZATION OF THE DEPARTMENT. 

Postmaster-General, salary $8,000 

Chief Clerk, « 2,200 



First Assistant Postmaster-General, salary $3,000 

(At the head of the Appointment office). 
Second Assistant Postmaster-General, " $3,000 

(At the head of the Contract ofiice). 
Third Assistant Postmaster-General, " $3,000 

(At the head of the Finance office). 



ATTORNEY-aENERAL. 389 



6 Clerks 


(class 4), 


salaries each 


$1,800 


per annum. 


29 Clerks 


(class 3), 


a a 


1,600 


a u 


33 Clerks 


(class 2), 


(I li 


1,400 


u a 


14 Clerks 


(class 1), 


a li 


1,200 


a u 



The annual appropriations required for the payment of salaries 
and contingent expenses of this department, amount to about one 
hundred and seventy thousand dollars. 



ATTORNEY-GENEEAL. 

" There shall also be appointed, a meet person learned in the 
law, to act as attorney-general for the United States, who shall 
be sworn or affirmed to a faithful execution of his office ; whose 
duty it shall be to prosecute and conduct all suits in the Supreme 
Court in which the United States shall be concerned, and to give 
his advice and opinion upon questions of law, when required by 
the President of the United States, or when requested by the 
heads of any of the departments, touching any matters that may 
concern their departments." Act of 1789. 1 Stat, at Large, 93. 

By a clause in the general appropriation bill passed March 3, 
1859, the attorney-general is allowed to appoint an assistant 
attorney-general, at a salary of $3,000 per annum ; two clerks at 
$1,600 each, and one clerk at $1,400 per annum. 

The annual appropriations for the payment of the salaries and 
contingent expenses of the attorney-general's office, is about 
$17,500. 

33* 



ELECTOEAL VOTES FOE PEESIDENT AND VICE-PEESTDENT 
OE THE UNITED STATES OP AMEEICA. 



Election op 1789. 


fevf 

^ o 

6 


°.i 

11 

■a § 


li 

si 


O 

^ o 

a 

1-5 




ll 
f4° 


1^- 
•9)2 

v-i 


1^ 


New Hampshire . 
Massachusetts . . 
Connecticut . . 
New Jersey . . . 
Pennsylvania . . 
Delaware .... 
Maryland . . . 
Virginia .... 
South Carolina 
Georgia 


' 5 

10 
7 
6 

10 
3 
6 

10 
7 
5 


- 5 

10 

6 

1 

8 

5 


2 


5 
3 

i 


'2 

i 
1 


6 


3 




6 


69 


34 


2 


9 


4 


6 3 


1 
6 1 



John Milton, of Ga. received 2, and J. Armstrong, of Ga., and B. Lincoln, of 
Mass. 1 each. 



Election of 1793. 



New Hampshire 
Massachusetts . 
Khode Island . . 
Connecticut . . 
Vermont . . . 
New York . . 
New Jersey . . 
Pennsylvania . 
Delaware . . . 
S'laryland . . . 
Virginia . . . 
Kentucky . . . 
North Carolina . 
South Carolina . 
Georgia . . . 

(390) 



6 

16 
4 
9 
3 

12 
7 

15 
3 
8 

21 
4 

12 






6 

16 
4 
9 
3 

"7 

14 

3 



12 
'1 

21 

12 
'4 









ELECTORAL VOTES. 



391 



1 

Election of 1797. 


O 

a 


a 
o 

1 =^ 

o 

o 

si 


0? 

a 

. O 

o 


o 


o 

h 

1 


o 

.So 
6 


Cm 
O 

a 

o 

*-5 


d 


Tennessee . 
Kentucky . 
Georgia . . 
South Carolin 
North Carolin. 
Virginia 
Maryland . 
Delaware . 
Pennsylvania 
New Jersey 
New York . 
Connecticut 
Rhode Island 
Massachusetts 
Vermont . 
New Hampshi 


I 
re 






i 
1 

7 
3 
1 
7 

12 
9 
4 

16 
4 
6 


3 
4 
4 

11 

20 

14 




's 

1 
1 

4 
3 
2 
7 
12 
4 

13 

4 


3 

4 

6 

1 
3 

13 




15 




4 
1 

6 




5 


4 
3 




71 


68 


59 


30 


15 


11 


5 


7 



S. Johnston, of N. C. received 3 ; J. Iredell, of N. C. 3 ; G. Washington, of Va. 
2; C. C. Pincknej', of S. C. 1; and John Henry, of Md. 2. 



Election op 1801. 


a 

o 

d 
H 


o 


o 

a 


0? 
9 

■go 

. C 

o 
d 


O 

a 
■g 

1-5 








6 
16 

4 
9 
4 

*7 
7 
3 
5 

4 


6 
16 
3 
9 
4 

*7 
7 
3 
5 

4 




Massachusetts 


Connecticut 

Vermont 

New York 

New Jersey 

Pennsylvania 

Delaware 


12 

*8 

*5 
21 

4 
8 
3 
8 
4 


12 

's 

5 
21 

4 
8 
3 
8 
4 


Maryland 

Virginia 

Kentucky 

North Carolina 


Tennessee 










73 


73 


65 


64 


1 



The vote for Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr being equal, the House of Rep- 
resentatives proceeded on Wednesday, February 11, 1801, to the choice of a 



392 



ELECTORAL VOTES. 



President of the United States. On the first ballot eight States voted for Thomas 
Jefferson, of Virginia, six States voted for Aaron Burr, of New York, and the 
votes of two States were divided. The balloting continued until Tuesday, 17th 
Feb. 1801, when on the thirty-sixth ballot the votes of ten States were given for 
Thomas Jefferson, of Virginia, the votes of four States for Aaron Burr, of New 
Yorli, and the votes of two States in blank, and Thomas Jefferson, of Virginia, 
■was elected. 

Aaron Burr, as Vice-President, took the oath of office, and entered upon his 
duties on 4th of March, 1801. 



Election op 1805. 



New Hampshire 
Massachusetts . 
Rhode Island 
Connecticut . . 
Vermont . . . 
New York . . 
New Jersey . . 
Pennsylvania 
Delaware . . . 
Maryland . . . 
Virginia . . . 
North Carolina . 
South Carolina . 
Georgia . . . 
Tennessee . . 
Kentucky . . 
Ohio . . . . 



PRESIDENT. 






7 

19 

4 



19 

8 

20 

9 

24 

14 

10 

6 

5 



162 



9 3 






14 



VICE-PRESIDENT. 






7 

19 

4 

6 
19 

8 
20 



24 
14 
10 
6 
5 
8 
3 

162 



14 



ELECTORAL VOTES. 



393 











PEESIDENT. 


VICE-PRESIDENT. 


Election of 1809. 


a . 

o 


O 


a 2 


O 

f 


■3 

1-5 


o 

2.S 
c a 

It 

a 

oi 

"-5 


1=3 
teg 

«g 

"-5 


bo fc. 


New Hampshir 
Massachusetts 
Rhode Island 
Connecticut 
Vermont 
New York . 
New Jersey 
Pennsylvania 
Delaware 
Maryland . 
Virginia . . 
North Carolina 
South Carolina 
Georgia . . 
Kentucky . 
Tennessee . 
Ohio . . . 


e . 






'e 

13 

S 
20 

9 

24 

11 

10 

6 

7 

5 

3 




6 


7 

1£ 

A 

S 

£ 

2 

£ 




1 

2 

2 

1 
1 


3 
8 


9 
4 

1 

6 
7 
5 




3 




3 




6 
3 


1 


7 
9 
4 
9 

3 

2 

3 




122 


6 


47 


113 


3 


3 


9 


« 1 



394 



ELECTORAL VOTES. 



Election op 1813. 


PRESIDENT 


V. PRESIDENT. 


a 
.2 :e 

|:s 

i ° 


n 


si 

Wo 


^■3 






8 

22 

4 

( 

2£ 


1 

2 

8 

25 

6 
25 
15 
11 

8 
12 


7 

20 
4 
9 

29 

8 

4 

5 
















8 










25 


Delaware 


Maryland . 


6 
25 
15 
11 

8 
12 

8 
7 
3 


Virginia 








South Carolina 


(leorgia 


Kentucky 




8 I - 


Ohio 


7 
3 




Louisiana 




128 


S£ 


131 


86 1 



ELECTORAL VOTES. 



395 



Election or 1817- 



New Hampshire 
M:issachusetts 
Rhode Island . 
Connecticut . 
Vermont . . 
New York . . 
New Jersey . 
Pennsylvania . 
Delaware . . 
Jlaryland . . 
Virginia . . 
North Carolina 
South Carolina 
Georgia . . . 
Kentucky . . 
Tennessee . . 
Ohio .... 
Louisiana . . 
Indiana . . . 



PRESIDENT. 



o to 



29 

8 

25 

8 
25 
15 
11 

8 
12 



183 






22 



o . 



84 



29 

8 

25 



25 
15 
11 

8 
12 



183 



VICE-PRESIDEN^. 



22 



22 






396 



ELECTOEAL VOTES. 



Election of 1821. 



New Hampshire 
Massachusetts . 
Rhode Island 
Connecticut . . 
Vermont . . . 
New York . . 
New Jersey . . 
Pennsylvania . 
Delaware . . . 
Maryland . . . 
Virginia . . . 
North Carolina . 
South Carolina . 
Georgia . . . 
Kentucky . . . 
Tennessee . . 
Ohio . . . . 
Louisiana . . 
Indiana . . . 
Mississippi . . 
Illinois .... 
Alabama . . . 
Maine . . . . 
Missouri . . . 



PRESIDENT. 



o .S 
M ho 



7 
15 

4 

9 

8 
29 

8 
24 

4 
11 
25 
15 
11 

8 
12 

r 

8 
3 
3 
2 
3 
3 



231 



YICE-PESIDENT. 



3 . 



7 
7 
4 
9 
8 

29 
8 

24 

10 
25 
15 
11 
8 
12 



3 
3 
2 
3 
3 
9 
3 

218 



m a 

■» S 



re g 
O & 

"3 Pi 



ELECTORAL VOTES. 



897 



Election op 1825. 



<3\ 



u bo 



.2 3 



VICE-PRESIDENT. 



;25 



3.ii 
C>-| 



New Hampshire 
Massachusetts 
Rhode Island 
Connecticut 
Vermont . . 
New York 
New .Jersey . 
Pennsylvania 
Delaware. . 
Maryland . . 
Virginia . . 
North Carolina 
South Carolina 
Georgia . . 
Kentuck}^ 
Tennessee 
Ohio . . . 
Louisiana 
Indiana . . 
Mississipp 
Illinois . 
Alabama 
Maine . 
Missouri 



28 



11 



15 
4 
8 
7 

26 



1 
24 



7 

15 

3 



29 
8 

28 
1 

10 

15 
11 

"7 
11 

'5 
5 
3 
3 
5 
9 



24 



99 



84 



41 



37 



182 



13 



For Vice-president, Henry Clay, of Kentucky, received two. 

Neither of the persons voted for as President having received a majority of the 
votes, it devolved upon the House of Representatives to choose a President from 
the three highest on the list of those voted for by the electors for President, which 
three were, Andrew Jackson, Jolm Quincy Adams, and William H. Crawford. 
The votes of thirteen States were given for John Quincy Adams ; the votes of 
seven States for Andrew Jackson, and the votes of four States for William H. 
Crawford. John Quincy Adams, having received a majority of the votes of all the 
States of this Union, was duly elected President of the United States for four 
years, to commence on the 4th of March, 1825. 

34 



398 



ELECTORAL VOTES. 



Eleciion op 1829. 


PRESIDE 


VT. VICE-PRESIDENT. 


a ° 
< 


< 

h 


Massachusetts. 

John C. Calhoun, 
of S. Carolina. 


Cm 
O 

4i 

S si 

S a 
■gfS 

5 


II 

II 
1^ 




1 

20 

28 

5 

24 

15 

11 

9 

14 

11 

16 

5 

3 

5 

3 

5 

3 




8 1 
8 
15 
4 
8 
7 

16 20 
8 

28 
3 

6 5 

24 

15 

11 

2 

14 

11 

16 

5 

3 

5 

3 

5 

3 


8 
8 

15 
4 
8 
7 

16 
8 

i 

6 


"7 




Massachusetts 

Rhode Island 




New York 




Delaware 




North Carolina 

South Carolina 

Georgia 


. 








Ohio 




Indiana 




Alabama 








178 




33 171 


83 


7 



ELECTORAL VOTES. 



399 





PEESBBENT. 


VICE-PEESIDEMT. 


„ 






<« 


<« 


<« 










c 


o 


o 


o 


O 


o . 


2"S 


Cm . 


C a 


Election of 1832. 


o aJ 

II 

ii 

p ° 
< 




s 

w 


■§ 

>-> 




3 O 


a a 

a oj 

to la 
eg 
■§^ 

1-5 


.s a 




a 

1^ 


Maine . . . 


10 


. . 






10 










N. Hampshire 


7 








7 










Massachusetts 




14 








14 








Rhode Island 




4 








4 








Connecticut 




8 








8 








Vermont . . 








i 












New York . 


42 








42 










New Jersey . 


8 








8 










Pennsylvania 


30 












30 






Delaware . 




3 








3 








Mar^'land . 


3 


5 






3 


5 








Virginia . . 


23 








23 










North Carolina 


15 








15 










South Carolina 






11 










ii 




Georgia . . 


11 


• • 






ii 










Kentucky . 




15 








15 








Tennessee . 


15 








15 










Ohio . . . 


21 








21 










Louisiana . 


5 








5 










Mississippi . 


4 








4 










Indiana . . 


9 








9 










Illinois . . 


5 








5 










Alabama. . 


7 








7 




• • 






Missouri . . 


4 








4 












219 


49 


11 


7 


189 


49 


30 


11 


7 



400 



ELECTORAL VOTES. 



Election of 1836. 



Maine. . . 
N. Hampshire 
Massachusetts 
Rhode Island 
Connecticut 
Vermont . . 
New York . 
New Jersey- 
Pennsylvania 
Delaware 
Maryland . 
Virginia . . 
North Carolina 
South Carolina 
Georgia . . 
Kentucky . 
Tennessee . 
Ohio . . . 
Louisiana, . 
Mississippi . 
Indiana . . 
Illinois . . 
Alabama 
Missouri 
Arkansas 
Michigan 



M 






42 
30 



23 
15 



170 



Wo 



Wo 



73 



^g 



14 



14 



11 



11 



VICE-PKESIDENT. 



n a 



42 
30 



15 






ai 



cf* 



14 



15 
21 



10 



15 



23 



147* 



47 



* Elected by the Senate. 



ELECTORAL VOTES. 



401 







Election op 


1840.* 




Election 


OP 1844 




States. 


PRESIDENT. 


VICE-PRESIDENT. 


PRESIDENT. 


V. PRESIDENT. 


p 

g 

'£.2 

►wo 

Si's 

1 


U-4 

o 


t4-t 

o 
— 'a 

J3 
o 


O 

ii 


(1-1 



"3 . 




^ • 
■3 S 

tsJ H 




.2-t 

§ 


g s 
14 

0*8 


3 


Maine. . . 


10 




10 






9 




9 




N. Hampshire 




*7 




i 




6 




6 




Massachusetts 


14 




14 






. . 


i2 




li 


Rhode Island 


4 




4 








4 


. . 


4 


Connecticut 


8 




8 








6 


. . 


6 


Vermont . . 


7 




7 








6 




6 


New York . 


42 




42 






36 




36 




New Jersey 


8 




8 








'7 




'7 


Pennsylvania 


SO 




30 






26 




26 




Delaware . 


3 




3 






, , 


'3 




3 


Maryland . 


10 




10 








8 




8 


Virginia . . 




23 




22 




i7 




if 




North Carolina 


15 




15 








ii 


. . 


ii 


South Carolina 




ii 






ii 


'9 




9 




Georgia . . 


ii 




ii 






10 




10 




Kentucky . 
Tennessee . 


15 
15 




15 
15 








i2 

13 




12 

13 


Ohio . . . 


21 




21 






. . 


23 




23 


Louisiana . 


5 




5 






6 




6 




. 


Mississippi , 
Indiana . . 


4 
9 




4 
9 






6 
12 




6 
12 






Illinois . . 




5 




'5 




9 




9 






Alabama . . 




7 


, , 


7 




9 




9 






Missouri . . 




4 




4 




7 




7 






Arkansas 




3 


, , 


3 




3 




3 






Michigan 


i 




3 






5 




5 








234 


60 


234 


48 


11 


170 


105 


170 


105 



* James K. Polk received one electoral vote. 



34^ 



402 



ELECTORAL VOTES. 



Election op 1848. 



V. PRESIDENT. 



^3 



o o 

3 & 






Maine . . . , 
New Hampshire 
Massachusetts 

Rhode Island . . 

Connecticut . . 

Vermont . . , 

New York . . , 

New Jersey . , 
Pennsylvania . 
Delaware . . 

Marj'land . . , 

Virginia . . , 

North Carolina . 

South Carolina . 

Georgia. . . . 

Kentucky . . . 

Tennessee . . . 

Ohio . . . . 

Louisiana . . , 

Mississippi . , 

Indiana . . . , 

Illinois . . . , 

Alabama . . , 

Missouri . . . 

Arkansas . . . 

Michigan . . . 

Florida . . . . 

Texas . . . . 

Iowa 

Wisconsin . . . 



12 
4 
6 
6 

36 
7 

26 
3 



11 

10 
12 
13 



163 



11 



23 



7 
3 
5 

i 
4 
4 

127 



12 

4 
6 
6 

se 

7 

26 

3 



23 

6 
12 

9 
9 
7 
3 
5 

4 
4 
4 

127 



ELECTORAL VOTES. 



403 



States. 




Electio> 


OF 1852 


II 


Election of 1856. 


PRESIDENT. 


v. PRESIDENT. 


PRESIDENT. 


VICE-PRB6IDENT. 


i 

s 

a 
3 


o 

to 
a 


to 



S 
1 


B 

t 

■< 

1 


James Buchanan. 
John C. Fremont. 
Millard ■Rillmnrp. 




.1 

u 

a 
13 

S 


d 


1 
j-3 


n 


a 

P 

1^ 

■d 

c 
•< 


Maine 


8 




8 




8 






8 






N. H. 


5 




5 




5 








5 






Mass. 


. . 


13 




13 


13 








13 






R. Island 


4 




'4 




4 








4 






Conn. 


6 




6 




6 








6 






Vt. . 




'5 




5 


5 








5 






N. Y. 


35 




85 




35 








35 






N. J. 


7 




7 




7 




'7 








Penn. 


27 




27 




!7 




27 








Del. . 


3 




3 




3 




3 








Md. . 


8 




8 
















Va. . 


15 




15 


'. '. 1 


5 '.'. 




15 








N.C. 


10 




10 


] 







10 








S. C. 


8 




8 




8 




8 








Georgia 


10 




10 


." '. 1 







10 








Ky. ? 




12 




12 1 


2 




12 








Tenn. 




12 




12 ] 


2 




12 








Ohio. 


23 




23 




23 






23 






La. . 


6 




6 




6 




*6 








Miss. 


7 




7 




7 




7 








Indiana 


13 




13 


'. '. 1 


3 




13 








Illinois 


11 




11 


] 


1 




11 








Ala. . 


9 




9 




9 




9 








Mo. , 


9 




9 




9 




9 








Ark. 


4 




4 




4 




4 








IDch. 


6 




6 




6 






6 






Florida 


3 




3 




3 




'3 








Texas 


4 




4 




4 




4 








Iowa 


4 




4 




4 






4 






Wis. . 


4 




4 




4 






4 






Cal. . 


4 




4 




4 




'4 










254 


42 


254 


42 I 17 


4 113 8 




174 


113 


8 



EXECUTIVE administratio:ns. 



WASHINGTON'S CABINET. 

1789 TO 1797. 

Secretaries of State. 
Thomas Jefferson, of Virginia, Sept. 26, 1789. 
Edmund Randolph, of Virginia, Jan. 2, 1794. 
Timothy Pickering, of Pa., Dec. 10, 1795. 

Secretaries of the Treasury. 
Alexander Hamilton, of New York, Sept. 11, 1789. 
Oliver Wolcott, Jr., of Connecticut, Feb. 3, 1795. 

Secretaries of War. 
Henry Knox, of Massachusetts, Sept. 12, 1789. 
Timothy Pickering, of Pennsylvania, Jan. 2, 1795. 
James McHenry, of Maryland, Jan. 27, 1796. 

Secretaries of the Navy. 
None appointed in Washington's administration. 

Postmasters- General. 
Samuel Osgood, of Massachusetts, Sept. 26, 1789. 
Timothy Pickering, of Pennsylvania, Aug. 12, 1791. 
Joseph Habersham, of Georgia, Feb. 25, 1795. 

Attorneys- General. 
Edmund Randolph, of Virginia, Sept. 26, 1789. 
William Bradford, of Pennsylvania, Jan. 28, 1794. 
Charles Lee, of Virginia, Dec. 10, 1795. 
Average annual expenditure, exclusive of public debt, $1,986,588 

(404) 



THOMAS Jefferson's cabinet. 405 

JOHN ADAMS'S CABINET. 

1797 TO 1801. 

Secretaries of Slate. 
Timothy Pickering, of Pennsylvania (held over). 
John Marshall, of Virginia, May 13, 1800. 

Secretaries of the Treasury. 
Oliver Wolcott, of Connecticut (held over). 
Samuel Dexter, of Massachusetts, Dec. 31, 1800. 

Secretaries of War. 
James McHenry, of Maryland (held over). 
John Marshall, of Virginia, May 7, 1800. 
Samuel Dexter, of Massachusetts, May 13, 1800. 
Roger Grisvvold, of Connecticut, Feb. 3, 1801. 

Secretaries of the Navy. 
George Cabot, of Massachusetts, May 3, 1798. 
Benjamin Stoddert, of Maryland, May 21, 1798. 

Postmaster- General. 
Joseph Habersham, of Georgia (held over). 

Attorney-General. 
Charles Lee, of Virginia (held over). 
Average annual expenditure, exclusive of public debt, $5,287,088. 



THOMAS JEFFERSON'S CABINET. 

1801 TO 1809. 

Secretary of Slate. 
James Madison, of Virginia, March 5, 1801. 

Secretary of the Treasury. 
Albert Gallatin, of Pennsylvania, May 14, 1801. 



406 EXECUTIVE ADMINISTRATIONS. 

Secretary of War. 
Henry Dearborn, of Massachusetts, March 5, 1801. 

Secretaries of the Navy. 
Benjamin Stoddert, of Maryland (held over). 
Eobert Smith, of Maryland, July 15, 1801. 
Jacob Crowninshield, of Massachusetts, March 2, 1805. 

Postmasters- General. 
Joseph Habersham, of Georgia (held over). 
Gideon Granger, of Connecticut, Nov. 28, 1801. 

Attorneys-General. 
Levi Lincoln, of Massachusetts, March 5, 1801. 
Robert Smith, of Maryland, March 2, 1805. 
John Breckinridge, of Kentucky, Dec. 23, 1805. 
Caesar A. Rodney, of Pennsylvania, Jan. 20, 1807. 
Average annual expenditure, exclusive of public debt, $5,142,598. 



JAMES MADISON'S CABINET. 
1809 TO 1817. 

Secretaries of State. 
Robert Smith, of Maiyland, March 6, 1809. 
James Monroe, of Virginia, April 2, 1811. 

Secretaries of the Treasury. 
Albert Gallatin^ of Pennsylvania (held over). 
George W. Campbell, of Tennessee, Feb. 9, 1814. 
Alexander James Dallas, of Pennsylvania, Oct-. 6, 181 G. 
William H. Crawford, of Georgia, Oct. 22, 1816. 

Secretaries of War. 
William Eustis, of Massachusetts, March 7, 1809. 
John Armstrong, of Pennsylvania, Jan. 13, 1813. 
James Monroe, of Virginia, Sept. 27, 1814. 
WilUam H. Crawford, of Georgia, March 3, 1815. 



JAMES MONROE'S CABINET. 407 

Secretaries of the Navy. 
Paul Hamilton, of South Carolina, March 7, 1809. 
William Jones, of Pennsylvania, Jan. 12, 1813. 
Benj. W. Crowninshield, of Massachusetts, Dec. 17, 1814. 

Postmasters- General. 
Gideon Granger, of Connecticut (held over). 
Return Jonathan Meigs, jr., of Ohio, March 19, 1814. 

A ttorneys- General. 
Caesar A. Rodney, of Pennsylvania (held over). 
William Pinkney, of Maryland, Dec. 11, 1811. 
Richard Rush, of Pennsylvania, Feb. 10, 1814. 
Average annual expenditure, exclusive of public debt, $18,085,617. 



JAMES MONROE'S CABINET. 

1817 TO 1825. 
Secretary of State. 
John Quincy Adams, of Massachusetts, March 5, 1817. 

Secretary of ike Treasury. 
William H. Crawford, of Georgia, March 5, 1817. 

Secretary of War. 
John Caldwell Calhoun, of South Carolina, Oct. 8, 1817. 
[Mr. George Graham was appointed acting Sec'y of War 
in the recess of the Senate.] 

Secretaries of the Navy. 
Benj. W. Crowninshield, of Massachusetts (held over). 
Smith Thompson, of New York, Nov. 9, 1818. 
John Rodgers, of New York, Sept. 1, 1823. 
Samuel L. Southard, of New Jersey, Dec. 9, 1823. 

Postmasters- General. 
Return J. Meigs, jr., of Ohio (held over). 
John McLean, of Ohio, Dec. 9, 1823. 



408 , EXECUTIVE ADMINISTRATIONS. 

Attorneys- General. 
Richard Rush, of Pennsylvania (held over). 
William Wirt, of Virginia, Nov. 13, 1817. 
Average annual expenditure, exclusive of public debt, $13,045,431. 



JOHN QUmCY ADAMS'S CABINET. 

1825 to 1829. 
Secretary of State. 
Henry Clay, of Kentucky, March 7, 1825. 

Secretary of the Treasury. 
Richard Rush, of Pennsylvania, March 7, 1825. 

Secretaries of War. 
James Barbour, of Virginia, March 7, 1825. 
Peter B. Porter, of New York, May 26, 1828. 

Secretary of the Navy. 
Samuel L. Southard, of New Jersey (held over). 

Postmaster-General, 
John McLean, of Ohio (held over). 

A ttorney- General. 
William Wirt, of Virginia (held over). 
Average annual expenditure, exclusive of public debt, $12,625,478. 



ANDKEW JACKSON'S CABINET. 

1829 to 1837. 
Secretaries of State. 
Martin Van Buren, of New York, March 6, 1829. 
Edward Livingston, of Louisiana, May 24, 1831. 
Louis McLane, of Delaware, May 29, 1833. 
John Forsyth, of Georgia, June 27, 1834. 



MAKTIN VAN BUEEN'S CABINET. 409 

Secretaries of the Treasury. 
Samuel D. Ingham, of Pennsylvania, March 6, 1829. 
Louis McLane, of Delaware, Aug. 8, 1831. 
William J. Duane, of Pennsylvania, May 29, 1833. 
Roger B. Taney, of Maryland, Sept. 23, 1833. 
Levi Woodbury, of New Hampshire, June 27, 1834. 

Secretaries of War. 
John H. Eaton, of Tennessee, March 9, 1829. 
Lewis Cass, of Ohio, Aug. 1, 1831. 

Secretaries of the Nary. 
John Branch, of North Carolina, March 9, 1829. 
Levi Woodbury, of New Hampshire, May 23, 1831. 
Mahlon Dickerson, of New Jersey, June 30, 1834. 

Postmasters-General. 
William T. Barry, of Kentucky, March 9, 1829. 
Amos Kendall, of Kentucky, May 1, 1835. 

A ttorneys- General. 
Jno. M. Berrien, of Georgia, March 9, 1829. 
Roger Brooke Taney, of Maryland, July 20, 1831. 
Benjamin F. Butler, of New York, November 15, 1833. 
Average annual expenditure, exclusive of public debt, $18,068,301 



MARTESr YAE BURET'S CABINET. 

1837 to 1841. 
Secretary of S:ate. 
John Forsyth, of Georgia (held over). 

Secretary of the Treasury. 
Levi Woodbury, of New Hampshire (held over). 

Secretary of War. 
Joel R. Poinsett, of South Carolina, March 7, 1837. 

Secretaries of the Navy. 
Mahlon Dickerson, of New Jersey (held over). 
James Kirke Paulding, of New York, June 20, 1838. 
35 



410 EXECUTIVE ADMINISTRATIONS. 

Postmosters- General. 
Amos Kendall, of Kentucky (held over). 
John M. Niles, of Connecticut, May 25, 1840. 

A ttorneys- General. 
Benjamin F. Butler, of New York (held over). 
Felix Grundy, of Tennessee, July 7, 1838. 
Henry D. Gilpin, of Pennsylvania, Jan. 10, 1840, 
Average annual expenditure, exclusive of public debt, $28,047,173. 



WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON'S CABINET. 

Secretary of Slate. 
Daniel Webster, of Massachusetts, March 5, 1841. 

Secretary of the Treasury. 
Thomas Ewing, of Ohio, March 5, 1841. 

Secretary of War. 
John Bell, of Tennessee, March 5, 1841, 

Secretary of the Navy. 
George E. Badger, of North Carolina, March 5, 1841. 

Postmaster- General. 
Francis Granger, of New York, March 6, 1841. 

Attorney-General. 
John J. Crittenden, of Kentucky, March 5, 1841. 



JOHN TYLER'S CABINET. 

Secretaries of State. 
Daniel Webster, of Massachusetts (Iield over). 
Abel P. Upshur, of Virginia, July 24, 1813. 
John C. Calhoun, of South Carohna, March 6, 1844. 



JAMES KNOX folk's CABINET. 411 

Secretaries of the Treasury. 
Thomas Ewing, of Ohio (held over). 
Walter Forward, of Pennsylvania, Sept. 13, 1841. 
John C. Spencer, of New York, March 3, 1843. 
George M. Bibb, of Kentucky, June 15, 1844. 

Secretaries of War. 
John Bell, of Tennessee (held over). 
John C. Spencer, of New York, Oct. 12, 1841. 
James Madison Porter, of Pennsylvania, March 8, 1843. 
William Wilkins, of Pennsylvania, Feb. 15, 1844. 

Secretaries of the Navy. 
George E. Badger, of North Carolina (held over). 
Abel P. Upshur, of Virginia, Sept. 13, 1841. 
David Henshaw, of Massachusetts, July 24, 1843. 
Thomas W. Gilmer, of Virginia, Feb. 15, 1844. 
John Y. Mason, of Virginia, March 14, 1844. 

Postmasters- General. 
Francis Granger, of New York (held over). 
Charles A. Wickliffe, of Kentucky, Sept. 13, 1841. 

Attorneys- General. 
John J. Crittenden, of Kentucky (held over). 
Hugh S. Legare, of South Carolina, Sept. 13, 1841. 
John Nelson, of Maryland, July 1, 1843. 

Average annual expenditure, exclusive of public debt, $23,541,238. 



JAMES KNOX POLK'S CABINET. 

1845 TO 1849. 

Secretary of State. 

James Buchanan, of Pennsylvania, March 5, 1845. 

Secretary of the Treasury. 
Robert J. Walker, of Mississippi, March 5, 1845. 



412 EXECUTIVE ADMINISTRATIONS. 

Secretary of War. 
William L. Marcy, of New York, March 5, 1845. 

Secretaries of the Navy. 
George Bancroft, of Massachusetts, March 10, 1845. 
John Y. Mason, of Virginia, September 9, 1846. 

Postmaster- General. 
Cave Johnson, of Tennessee, March 5, 1845. 

A Itorneys- General. 
John Y. Mason, of Virginia, March 5, 1845. 
Nathan Clifford, of Maine, October 17, 1846. 
Isaac Toucey, of Connecticut, 1848. 
Average annual expenditure, exclusive of public debt, $36,- 
681,101. 



ZACHAEY TAYLOR'S CABINET. 

1849 TO 1850. 
Secretary of State. 
John M. Clayton, of Delaware, March 7, 1849. 

Secretary of the lYeasury. 
William M. Meredith, of Pennsylvania, March 7, 1849. 

Secretary of War. 
George W. Crawford, of Georgia, March 7, 1849. 

Secretary of the Navy. 
William B. Preston, of Virginia, March 7, 1849. 

Secretary of the Interior. 
Thomas Ewing, of Ohio, March 7, 1849. 

Postmaster- Gen eral. 
Jacob Collamer, of Vermont, March 7, 1849. 

Attorney-General. 
Reverdy Johnson, of Maryland, March 7, 1849. 
Anuual expenditure, exclusive of public debt, $31,074,347. 



FRANKLIN PIERCE'S CABINET. 413 

MILLARD FILLMORE'S CABINET. 

1850 TO 1853. 

Secretaries of Slate. 
Daniel Webster, of Massachusetts, July 20, 1850. 
Edward Everett, of Massachusetts, November, 18o2. 

Secretary of the Treasury. 
Thomas Corwin, of Ohio, July 20, 1850. 

Secretary of War. 
Charles M. Conrad, of Louisiana, August 15, 1850. 

Secretaries of the Navy. 
William A. Graham, of North Carolina, July 20, 1850 
John P. Kennedy, of Maryland, 1852. 

Secretaries of the Interior. 
Tho. M. T. McKennan, of Pennsylvania, August 15, 1850 
Alexander H. H. Stuart, of Virginia, September 12, 1850. 

Postmasters-General. 
Nathan K. Hall, of New York, July 20, 1850. 
Samuel D. Hubbard, of Connecticut, 1852. 

A tiorney- General. 
John J. Crittenden, of Kentucky, July 20, 1850. 
Average annual expenditure, exclusive of public debt, 
805,721. 



FRANKLIN PIERCE'S CABINET. 

Secretary of State. 
William L. Marcy, of New York, March 7, 1853. 

Secretary of the Treasury. 
James Gutlirie, of Kentucky, March 7, 1853. 

Secretary of War. " 
Jefferson Davis, of Mississippi, March 7, 1853. 
35* 



414 EXECUTIVE ADMINISTRATIONS. 

Secretary of the Navy. 
James C. Dobbin, of North Carolina, March 7, 1853. 

Secretaries of the Interior. 
Eobert McLelland, of Michigan, March 7, 1853. 

Postmaster- General. 
James Campbell, of Pennsylvania, March 7, 1853. 

A ttorn ey- General. 
Caleb Cushing, of Massachusetts, March 7, 1853. 
Average annual expenditures, exclusive of public debt, 
872,028. 



JAMES BUCHANAN'S CABINET. 

Secretary of State. 
Lewis Cass, of Michigan, March, 1857. 

Secretary of the Treasury. 
Howell Cobb, of Georgia, March, 1857. 

Secretary of War. 
John B. Floyd, of Vu-ginia, March, 1857. 

Secretary of the Navy. 
Isaac Toucey, of Connecticut, March, 1857. 

Secretary of the Interior. 
Jacob Thompson, of Mississippi, March, 1857. 

Postmaster- General. 
Aaron V. Brown, of Tennessee, March, 1857. 
Joseph Holt of Kentucky, 1859. 

Attorney- General. 
Jeremiah S. Black, of Pennsylvania, 1857. 



LISTS OF OPFICEES OF THE GOVEENMENT FEOM 1789 TO 1860. 



SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES. 

Chief Justices. 
John Jay, of New York, appointed 26th Sept., 1789. 
William Gushing, of Mass., « 27th Jan., 1796. 
Oliver Ellsworth, of Ct., « 4th March, 1796. 

John Marshall, of Va., " 31st Jan., 1801. 

Roger B. Taney, " loth March, 1836. 

Associate Justices. 
John Rutledge, of S. C, appointed 26th Sept., 1789. 
William Gushing, of Mass., « 27th " " 
Robert H. Harrison, of Md., " 28th " « 
James Wilson, of Pa., « 29th " " 

John Blair, of Va., " 30th « « 

James Iredell, of N. G., Feb. 10, 1790, in place of R. H. Harrison, 

resigned. 
Thomas Johnson, of Md., Nov. 7, 1791, in place of John Rutledge, 

resigned. 
William Patterson, of N. Y., March 4, 1793, in place of T. John- 
son, resigned. 
Sam'l Ghase, of Md., Jan. 27, 1796, in place of John Blair, re- 
signed. 
Bushrod Washington, of Va., Dec. 20, 1798, in place of James 

Wilson, deceased. 
Alfred Moore, of N. G., Dec. 10, 1799, in place of James IredeJ', 
deceased. 

(415 



416 SUPREME COURT. 

William Johnson, of S. C, March 26, 1800, in place of Alfred 
ftloore, resigned. 

Thomas Todd, of Ky., March 3, 1807. 

Brockholst Livingston, of N. Y., Nov. 10, 1806, in place of W. 
Patterson, deceased. 

Levi Lincoln, of Mass., Jan. 3, 1811, declined. 

John Quincy Adams, Feb. 22, 1811, declined. 

Josfph Story, of Mass., Nov. 18, 1811, in place of William Gush- 
ing, de(;eased. 

Gabriel Duval, of Md., Nov. 18, 1811, in place of Sam'I Chase, 
deceased. 

Smith Thompson, of N. Y., Sept. 1, 1823, in place of B. Living- 
ston, deceased. 

Robert Trimble, of Ky., May 9, 1826, in place of Thomas Todd, 
deceased. 

John McLean, of Ohio, March 7, 1829, in place of R. Trimble, 
deceased. 

Henry Baldwin, of Pa., Jan. 6, 1830, in place of B. Washington, 
deceased. 

James M. Wayne, of Ga., Jan. 9, 1835, in place of W. Johnson, 
deceased. 

Philip P. Barbour, of Va., March 15, 1836, in place of G. Duval, 
resigned. 

William Smith, of Ala., March 8, 1837, declined. 

John Catron, of Tenn., March 8, 1837. 

John McKinley, of Ala., April 22, 1837. 

Peter V. Daniel, of Va., March 3, 1841, in place of P. P. Bar- 
bour, deceased. 

Samuel Nelson, of N. Y., Feb. 14, 1845, in place of Smith Thomp- 
son, deceased. 

Levi Woodbury, of N. H., Sept. 30, 1845, in place of Joseph 
Story, deceased. 

Robert C. Grier, of Pa., Aug. 4, 1846, in place of H. Baldwin, 
deceased. 

Benjamin R. Curtis, of Mass., 1852, in place of Levi Woodbury, 
deceased. 



PKESIDENTS OF THE SENATE. 417 

John A. Campbell, of Ala., March, 1853, in place of John McKin 

ley, deceased. 
Nathan Clifford, of Me. , 1859, in place of B. R. Curtis, re 

sifirned. 



VICE-PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES. 



John Adams, 


elected 1789 


Thomas Jefferson, 


u 


1797 


Aaron Burr, 


a 


1801 


George Clinton, 


a 


1805 


Elbridge Geriy, 


(( 


1813 


Daniel D. Tompkins, 


u 


1817 


John C. Calhoun, 


(( 


1825 


Martin Van Buren, 


u 


1833 


Richard M. Johnson, 


a 


1837 


John Tyler, 


(I 


1841 


George M. Dallas, 


i( 


1845 


Millard Fillmore, 


a 


1849 


William Rufus King, 


a 


1853 


John Cabell Breckinridge. 


a 


1857 



PRESIDENTS PRO TERIPORE OF THE SENATE. 

1789 TO 1860. 

John Langdon, New Hampshire. 

Richard Henry Lee, Virginia. 

John Langdon, New Hampshire. 

Ralph Izard, South Carolina. 

Henry Tazewell, Virginia. 

Samuel Livermore, New Hampshire. 

William Bingham, Pennsylvania. 

William Bradford, Rhode Island. 

Jacob Read, South Carolina. 

Theodore Sedgwick, Massachusetts. 



418 



PEESIDENTS OP THE SENATE. 



John Lawrence, 
James Ross, 
Samuel Livermore, 
Uriah Tracy, 
John P^ager Howard, 
James Hillhouse, 
Abraham Baldwin, 
Stephen R. Bradley, 
John Brown, 
Jesse Franklin, 
Joseph Anderson, 
Samuel Smith, 
Stephen R. Bradley, 
John Milledge, 
Andrew Gregg, 
John Gaillard, 
John Pope, 
William H. Crawford, 
Joseph B. Varnum, 
John Gaillard, 
James Barbour, 
John Gaillard, 
Nathaniel Macon, 
Samuel Smith, 
Littleton W. Tazewell, 
Hugh L. White, 
George Poindexter, 
John Tyler, 
William R. King, 
Samuel L. Southard, 
Willie P. Mangum, 
David R. Atchison, 
William R. King, 
David R. Atchison, 
Jesse D. Bright, 
James M. Mason, 
Benjamin Fitzpatrick, 



New York. 

Pennsylvania. 

New Hampshire. 

Connecticut. 

Maryland. 

Connecticut. 

Georgia. 

Vermont. 

Kentucky. 

North Carolina™ 

Tennessee. 

Maryland. 

Vermont. 

Georgia. 

Pennsylvania. 

South Carolina. 

Kentucky. 

Georgia. 

Massachusetts. 

South Carolina. 

Virginia. 

South Carolina. 

North Carolina. 

Maryland. 

Virginia. 

Tennessee. 

Mississippi. 

Virginia. 

Alabama. 

New Jersey. 

North Carolina. 

Missouri. 

Alabama. 

Missouri. 

Indiana. 

Virginia. 

Alabama. 



SPEAKERS OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. 419 



SPEAKERS OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. 

F. A. Muhlenberg, of Pa., from March 4, 1 789, to March 3, 1 79 1 
and from Dec. 2, 1793, to '• 3, 1795 
Jonathan Trumbull, of Ct., from Oct. 24, 1791, to " 2, 1793 
Jonathan Dayton, of N. J., "Dec. 7, 1795, to " 3,1799 

Tiieodore Sedgwick, of Mass., " " 2, 1799, to " 3, IHOl 
Nathaniel Macon, of N. C, " " 7, 1801, to " 3,1807 

J. B. Varnum, of Mass., " Oct. 26, 1807, to " 3,1811 

Henry Clay, of Kj., "Nov. 4, 181 1, to Aug. 2,1812 

and " Dec. 4, 1815, to May 15, 1820 
and " " 1, 1823, to March 3, 1825 
Langdon Cheves, of S. C, " " 6, 1813, to " 3,1815 

John W. Taylor, of N. Y., " Nov. 12, 1820, to " 3, 1821 

and " Dec. 4, 1825, to " 3, 1827 
Philip P. Barbour, of Va., " " 3, 1821, to " 3,1823 

Andrew Stevenson, of Va., " " 3, 1827, to June 20, 1834 

John Bell, of Tenn., « " 1, 1834, to March 3, 1835 

James K. Polk, of Tenn., 
Robert I\I. T. Hunter, of Va., 
John White, of Ky., 
John W. Jones, of Va., 
John W. Davis, of Indiana, 
Robert C. Winthrop, of Mass., 
Howell Cobb, of Ga., 
Linn Boyd, of Ky., 
Nathaniel P. Banks, of Mass., 
James L Orr, of S. C, 
William Pennington, of N. J., 



i( (( 


7, 1835, to 


ii 


3, 


1839 


ii (I 


7, 1839, to 


ii 


3, 


1841 


" ]May 


31, 1841, to 


ii 


3, 


1843 


"Dec. 


4, 1843, to 


a 


3, 


1845 


(( u 


3, 1845, to 


a 


3, 


1847 


(( li 


3, 1847, to 


t( 


3, 


1849 


a a 


3, 1849, to 


a 


3, 


1851 


i( ii 


3, 1851, to 


a 


3, 


1855 


i( i( 


3, 1855, to 


ii 


3, 


1857 


(( ii 


3, 1857, to 


a 


3, 


1859 


" Jan. 


1860, to 


ii 


3, 


1861 



420 MEMBEES OF CONVENTIONS. 

MEMBERS OF CONVENTIOlSrS AND CONGRESSES, 

PRIOR TO THE ADOPTION OF THE CONSTITUTION. 

Convention of Commissioners, assembled at Boston, 1643, to form 
Articles of Confederation for the United Colonies of New Eng- 
land. 

From the Colony of New Plymouth. 
Edward Winslovv, William Collier. 

From the Colony of Massachusetts Bay. 
John Winthrop, William Hawthorne, 

Thomas Dudley, • Gibbons, 

Simon Bradstreet, Tyng. 

From the Colony of Connecticut. 
John Haynes, Edward Hopkins. 

From the Colony of New Haven. 
Theophilus Eaton, Thomas Greyson. 



CONGRESS CONVENED AT ALBANY IN 1754. 

New York. 
James Delancey, John Chambers, 

Joseph Murray, William Smith. 

William Johnson, 

New Hampshire. 
Theodore Atkinson, Mesheck Ware, 

Richard Wibird, Henry Sherburne. 

Connecticut. 
William Pitkin, Elisha Williams. 

Roger Wolcott, 



CONGRESS OF 1765. 421 

3IassacJiusetts. 
Thoma'' Hutchinson, Oliver Partridge, 

Samuel Wells, John Worthington. 

John Chandler, 

Rhode Island. 
Stephen Hopkins, Martin Howard. 

Pennsylvania. 
John Penn, Richard Peters, 

Benjamin Franklin, Isaac Norris. 

Maryla^id. 
Benjamin Tasker, Abraham Barnes. 



CONGRESS OF 1765. 

Massachusetts. 
James Otis, Timothy Ruggles. 

Oliver Partridge, 

Rhode Island. 
Metcalf Bowler, Henry "Ward. 

Connecticut. 
Eliphalet Dyer, "William S. Johnson. 

David Rowland, 

New York. 
Robert R. Livingston, William Bayard, 
John Cruger, Leonard Lispenard. 

Philip Livingston, 

New Jersey. 
Robert Ogden, Joseph Borden. 

Hendrick Fisher, 
36 



422 THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS. 

Pennsylvania. 
John Dickinson, George Bryan. 

John Morton, 

Delaware. 
Jacob Kollock, Caesar Eodney. 

Thomas McKean, 

Maryland. 
William Murdock, Thomas Ringgold. 

Edward Tilghman, 

South Oarolina. 
Thomas Lynch, John Rutledge. 

Christopher Gadsden, 

Nine colonies represented by twenty-eight delegates, assembled 
in the city of New York, on Monday, October 7, 1765, and 
Timothy Ruggles, of Massachusetts, was elected President. 

Being duly organized, they commenced their business by the 
adoption of the following resolution : — 

Hesolved, That the committee of each colony shall have one 
voice only, in determining any questions that shall arise in the 
Congress. 



THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS. 

177 t to 1788. 

PRESIDENTS. 

Peyton Randolph, Virginia, 1774 

Henry Middleton, South Carolina, 1774 

Peyton Randolph, Virginia, 1775 

John Hancock, Massachusetts, 1775-6 

Henry Laurens, South CaroHna, 1777 

John Jay, New York, 1778 

Samuel Huntington, Connecticut, 1779-80 

Thomas McKean, Delaware, 1781 



THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS. 



423 



John Hanson, 


Maryland, 


1781 


Elias Boudinot, 


New Jersey, 


1782 


Thomas Mifflin, 


Pennsylvania, 


1783 


Richard Henry Lee, 


Virginia, 


1784-5 


Nathaniel Gorham, 


Massachusetts, 


1786 


Arthur St. Clair, 


Pennsylvania, 


1787 


Cyrus Griffin, 


Virginia, 


1788 


MEMBERS. 




New 


Hampshire. 





Bartlett, Josiali 
Blanchard, Jonathan 
Folsom, Nathaniel 
Foster, Abiel 
Fro.st, George 
Gilman, John Taylor 
Gilman, Nicholas 
Langdon, John 
Langdon, Woodbury 



Adams, John 
Adams, Samuel 
Gushing, Thomas 
Dana, Francis 
Dane, Nathan 
Gerry, Elb ridge 
Gorham, Nathaniel 
Hancock, John 
Higginson, Stephen 
Holton, Samuel 
Jackson, Jonathan 



Li verm ore, Samuel 
Long, Pierce 
Peabody, Samuel 
Sullivan, John 
Thornton, Matthew 
Wentworth, John, Jr. 
Whipple, William 
White, Phillips 
Wingate, Paine. 

Massachusetts. 

King, Rufus 
Lovell, James 
Lowell, John 
Osgood, Samuel 
Otis, Samuel A. 
Paine, Robert T. 
Partridge, George 
Sedgwick, Theodore 
Sullivan, James 
Thatcher, George 
Ward, Artemas. 



Arnold, Jonathan 
Arnold, Peleg 
Collins, John 



Rhode Island. 



Cornell, Ezekiel 
EUery, William 
Hazard, Jonathan 



424 



THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS. 



Hopkins, Stephen 
Howell, David 

Manning, 

Marchant, Henry 



Miller, Nathan 

Mowry, 

Varnum, James M. 
Ward, Samuel. 



Adams, Andrew 
Cook, Joseph P. 
Deane, Silas 
Dyer, Eliphalet 
Edwards, Pierpont 
Ellsworth, Oliver 
Hillhonse, William 
Hosmer, Titus 
Huntington, Benjamin 
Huntingtbn, Samuel 
Johnson, William S. 
Law, Richard 



Connecticut. 

Mitchell, Stephen M, 
Root, Jesse 
Sherman, Roger 
Spencer, Joseph 
Strong, Jedediah 
Sturges, Jonathan 
Treadwell, John 
Trumbull, Joseph 
Wadsworth, James 
Wadsworth, Jeremlala 
Williams, William 
Wolcott, Oliyer. 



Alsop, John 
Benson, Egbert 
Boerum, Simon 
Clinton, George 
DeWitt, Charles 
Duane, James 
Duer, William 
Floyd, William 
Gansevoort, Leonard 
Hamilton, Alexander 
Haring, John 
Jay, John 
Lansing, John 
Lawrence, John 
Lewis, Francis 
Livingston, Philip 



New Yorh. 

Livingston, Robert R. 
Livingston, Walter 
Low, Isaac 
L'Hommedien, Ezra 
Morris, Gouverneur 
Morris, Lewis 
M'Dougall, Alexander 
Paine, Ephraim 
Piatt, Zephaniah 
Schuyler, Philip 
Scott, John Morris 
Smith, Melancthon 
Wisner, Henry 
Yates, Abraham, Jr, 
Yates, Peter W. 



THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS. 



425 



New 
Beattj, John 
BoLidinot, Elias 
Burnett, W. 
Cadwallader, Lambert 
Clark, Abraham 
Condict, Silas 
Cooper, John 
Crane, Stephen 
Dayton, Elias 
De Hart, John 
Dock, Samuel 
Elmer, Jonathan 
Fell, John 

Frelinghuysen, Frederick 
Henderson, Thomas 



Jersey. 

Hopkinson, Francis 
Hornblower, Josiah 
Houston, "Wm. C. 
Kinsey, James 
Livingston, William 
Neilson, John 
Scheurman, J. 
Scudder, Nathaniel 
Sergeant, Jonathan D. 
Smith, Richard 

Stewart, 

Stockton, Richard 
Symmes, John C- 
Witherspoon, John. 



Pennsylvania. 



Allen, Andrew- 
Armstrong, John 
Attlee, Samuel 
Bayard, John 
Biddle, Edward 
Bingham, William 
Clarkson, Matthew 
Clingan, William 
Clymer, George 
Dickinson, John 
Fitzsimmons, Thomas 
Franklin, Benjamin 
Galloway, Joseph 
Gardner, Joseph 

Hand, 

Henry, William 
Humphreys, Charles 
Ingersoll, Jared 



Irwine, 

Jackson, David 
Matlack, Timothy 
McClure, James 

Meredith, 

Mifflin, Thomas 
Morris, Charles 
Morris, Robert 
Montgomery, John 
Morton, John 
Muhlenburg, Frederick A. 
Peters, Richard 
Pettit, Charles 

Read, 

Reed, Joseph 
Rhodes, Samuel 
Roberdeau, Daniel 
Ross, George 



36* 



426 



THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS. 



Rush, Benjamin 
Searle, James 
Shippen, William 
Smith, James 
Smith, Jonathan B. 
Smith, Thomas 

Bedford, Gunning 
Bedford, Gunning, Jr. 
Dickinson, John 
Dickinson, Philemon 
Evans, John 
Kearney, Dyre 
McComb, Eleazer 
Mitchell, Nathaniel 
McKean, Thomas 
Patton, John 



St. Clair, Arthur 
Taylor, George 
"Willing, Thomas 
Wilson, James 
Wynkoop, Henry. 



Delmvare. 



Perry, William 
Read, George 
Rodney, Caesar 
Rodney, Thomas 
Sykes, James 
Tilton, James 
Van Dyke, Nicholas 
Vining, John 
Wharton, Samuel. 



Maryland. 



Alexander, Robert 
Carmichael, William 
Carroll, Charles 
Carroll, Daniel 
Chase, Jeremiah T. 
Chase, Samuel 
Contee, Benjamin 
Forbes, James 
Forest, Uriah 
Goldsborough, Robert 
Hall, John 
Hanson, John 
Harrison, William 
Hemsley, William 
Henry, John 
Hindman, William 
Howard, John E. 
Jenifer, D. of St. Thomas 
Johnson, Thomas 



Lee, Thomas Sim 
Lloyd, Edward 
Martin, Luther 
Mc Henry, James 
Paca, William 
Plater, George 
Potts, Richard 
Ramsay, Nathaniel 
Ridgely, Richard 
Rogers, John 
Ross, David 
Rumsey, Benjamin 
Scott, Gustavus 
Seney, Joshua 
Smith, William 
Stone, Thomas 
Tilghman, Mathew 
Wright, Turbett. 



THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS. 



427 



Adams, Thomas 
Banister, John 
Bland, Richard 
Bland, Theodorick 
Braxton, Carter 
Brown, John 
Carrington, Edward 
Fitzliugh, 



Fleming, William 
Grayson, William 
Griffin, Cyrus 
Hardy, Samuel 
Harrison, Benjamin 
Harvie, John 
Henry, James 
Henry, Patrick 
Jefferson, Thomas 



Virginia. 

Jones, Joseph 
Lee, Arthur 
Lee, Francis Lightfoot 
Lee, Henry 
Lee, Richard Henry 
Madison, James Jr. 
Mercer, James 
Mercer, .John F. 
Monroe, James 
Nelson, Thomas 
Page, Mann 
Pendleton, Edmund 
Randolph, Edmund 
Randolph, Peyton 
Smith, Merewether 
W^ashington, George 
Wythe, George. 



Ashe, John B. 
Bloodworth, Timothy 
Blount, William 
Burke, Thomas 
Burton, Robert 
Caswell, Richard 
Cumming, William 
Harnett, Cornelius 
Hawkins, Benjamin 
Hewes, Joseph 
Hill, WhitmiU 
Hooper, William 



North Carolina. 

Johnston, Samuel 
Jones, Allen 
Jones, Willie 
Nash, Abner 
Penn, John 
Sitgreaves, .John 
Sharpe, William 
Spaight, Richard D. 
Swan, John 
Williams, ^ohn 
Williamson, Hugh 
White, Alexander. 



South Carolina. 
Bee, Thomas Bull, John 

Beresford, Richard Butler, Pierce 



428 



THE CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION OF 1787. 



Drayton, Wm. Henry 
Eveleigh, Nicholas 
Gadsden, Christopher 
Gervais, John L. 
Hey ward, Thomas, Jr. 
Huger, Daniel 
Hutson, Richard 
Izard, Ralph 
Kean, John 
Kinloch, F'rancis 
Laurens, Henry 
Lynch, Thomas 
Lynch, Thomas, Jr. 



Baldwin, Abraham 
Brownson, Nathan 
Bullock, Archibald 
Clay, Joseph 
Few, William 
Gibbons, William 
Gwinnett, Button 
Habersham, John 
Hall, Lyman 
Houston, John 



Matthews, John 
Middleton, Arthur 
Middleton, Henry 
Motte, Isaac 
Parker, John 
Pinckney, Charles 
Ramsay, David 
Read, Jacob 
Rutledge, Edward 
Rutledge, John 
Trapier, Paul 
Tucker, Thomas T. 



Georgia. 



Houston, William 
Howley, Richard 
Jones, Noble Wimberley 
Langworthy, Edward 
Pierce, W. 
Telfair, Edward 
Walton, George 
Wood, Joseph 
Zubly, John J. 



THE CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION OE 1787. 



Nicholas Gilman 
John Langdon 



*Francis Dana 
Elbridge Gerry 
Nathaniel Gorham 



New Hampshire. 

*John Pickering 
* Benjamin West. 

Massacjiusetts. 

Rufus King 
Caleb Strong. 



THE CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION OE 1787. 



429 



Connecticut. 
Oliver Ellsworth Roger Sherman. 

William Samuel Johnson 



Alexander Hamilton, 
John Lansino;, Jr. 



New York. 



Robert Yates. 



New Jersey. 



David Brearly 
*Abniham Clark 
Jonathan Dayton 
William Churchill Houston 



William Livingston 
*John Neilson 
William Paterson. 



George Clymer 
Thomas Fitzsimons 
Benjamin Franklin 
Jared IngersoU 



Pennsylcania. 



Thomas Mifflin 
Gouverneur Morris 
Robex't Morris 
James Wilson. 



Richard Bassett 
Gunning Bedford 
Jacob Broom 



Delaware. 



John Dickinson 
George Read. 



Maryland. 
Daniel Carroll James McHenry 

Daniel of St. Thomas Jenifer John Francis Mercer. 
Luther Martin 



Virginia. 
John Blair James McClung 

*Patrick Henry (declined) Edmund Randolph 

James Madison, Jr. George Washington 

George Mason George Wythe. 



430 SIGNERS OP THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 

North Carolina. 
"William Blount Alexander Martin 

* Richard Caswell (declined) Richard Dobbs Spaight 
William Richardson Davie Hugh Williamson. 

* Willie Jones (declined) 

South Carolina. 
Pierce Butler Charles Cotesworth Pinckney 

Charles Pinckney John Rutledge. 

Georgia. 
Abraham Baldwin *]S!'athaniel Pendleton 

William Few William Pierce 

William Houston * George Walton. 

Those gentlemen marked with an * did not attend the Con- 
vention durinof its sittinor. 



SIGNERS OF THE DECLARATION OE INDEPENDENCE. 

JOHN HANCOCK, PRESIDENT OP THE CONGRESS. 

From New Hampfthire. 



Josiah Bartlett, 


age at signing, 46 years. 


Died, 


, 1795 


Matthew Thornton, 


" G2 " 


u 


1803 


William Whipple, 


« 46 " 
Massachusetts. 


li 


1785 


John Adams, 


age at signing, 40 years. 


Died, 


, 1826 


Samuel Adams, 


" 53 " 


li 


1803 


Elbridge Gerrj, 


« - 32 " 


li 


1814 


John Hancock, 


" 39 " 


11 


1793 


Robert Treat Paine, 


« 45 " 


u 


1804 



SIGNERS OF THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 431 



Samuel Huntington, 
Roger Sherman, 
William Williams, 
Oliver Wolcott, 



Connecticut, 
age at signing, 44 years. Died, 1796 



55 
45 
50 



1783 
1811 

1797 



William Ellery, 
Stephen Hopkins, 



Rhode Island. 

age at signing, 48 years. Died, 1820 
" 71 " " 1785 



William Floyd, 
Francis Lewis, 
Philip Livingston, 
Lewis Morris, 



New York. 

age at signing, 41 years. Died, 1821 

« 63 '' " 1803 

« 60 " « 1778 

« 50 « " 1798 





Ne 


w Jersey. 








John Witherspoon, 


age 


at signing. 


54 years. 


Died, 


1794 


Abraham Clark, 




« 


50 " 


(( 


1794 


John Hart, 




(( 


63 " 


a 


1780 


Francis Hopkinson, 




11 


39 " 


a 


1790 


Eichard Stockton, 




u 


46 « 


(> 


1781 



George Clymer, 
Benjamin Franklin, 
Robert Morris, 
John Morton, 
George Ross, 
Benjamin Rush, 
James Smith, 
George Taylor, 
James Wilson, 



Pennsylvania. 
age at signing, 37 years. Died, 1813 



70 
43 
52 
46 
31 

60 
34 



1790 
1806 
1777 
1779 
1813 
1806 
1781 
1798 



432 SIGNERS OF THE DECLABATION OF INDEPENDENCE. 



Thomas McKean, 
George Read, 
Caesar Rodney, 



Delaicare. 
age at signing, 42 years. Died, 1817 



42 

46 



1798 
1783 



Maryland. 

Charles Carroll, age at signing, 38 years. Died, 1832 

Samuel Chase, « 35 " " 1811 

"William Paca, « 40 « « 1799 

Thomas Stone, « 34 " " 1787 



Carter Braxton, 
Benjamin Harrison, 
Thomas Jefferson, 
Francis Lightfoot Lee, 
Richard Henry Lee, 
Thomas Nelson, Jr., 
George Wythe, 



Virginia. 












age at signing, 


40 


years. 


Died, 


,1797 


<( 




— 


(( 


(( 


1791 


(( 




33 


a 


li 


1826 


(( 




42 


a 


a 


1797 


a 




44 


a 


a 


1794 


a 




37 


a 


a 


1789 


a 




50 


a 


a 


1806 



North Carolina. 

Joseph Hews, age at signing, 46 years. Died, 1779 

William Hooper, « 34 " " 1790 

John Penn, « 35 " " 1809 

South Carolina. 

Thomas Heyward, Jr., age at signing, 30 years. Died, 1804 

Thomas Lynch, Jr., " 26 " « 1779 

Arthur Middleton, « 34 " " 1787 

Edward Rutledge, " 26 " " 1800 



Georgia. 

Button Gwinnet, age at signing, 44 years. Died, 1777 

Lyman Hall, « 45 " " 1790 

George Walton, « 36 " " 1804 



UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT. 



THE EXECUTIVE. 

JAMES BUCHANAN, of Penn., President of (he United States, salary, $25,000 
JOHN C. BRECKINRIDGE, of Kentucky, Vice-President, " 6,000 



THE CABINET. 

LEWIS CASS, of Michigan, Secretary of State, 
HOWELL COBB, of Georgia, Secretary of the Treasury 
JACOB THOMPSON, of Jlississippi, Secretary of the interior 
ISAAC TOUCEY, of Connecticut, Secretary of the Navy, 
JOHN B. FLOYD, of Virginia, Secretary of War, 
JEREIHAH S. BLACK, of Pennsylvania, Attorney-General; 
JACOB HOLT, of Kentucky, Postmaster- General, 



salaiy, $8,000 




8,000 




8,000 




8,000 




8,000 




8,000 




8,000 



THE JUDICIARY. 

SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES. 
ROGER B. TANEY, of Maryland, Chief Justice, salary, $8,000. 



John A. Campbell, of Ala., Ass. Justice 
Samuel Nelson, of N. Y., " " 
Robert C. Geiee, of Penn., " " 
Nathan Clifford, of Me., " " 
Salary of Associate Justices, $6,000. Court meets first Monday in December, at 

Washinsfton. 



John M'Lean, of Ohio, Associate Justice 
James M. Wayne, of Ga., " " 

John Catron, of Tenn., " " 



MINISTERS TO FOREIGN COUNTRIES. 

ENVOYS EXTRAORDINARY AND MINISTERS PLENIPOTENTIARY. 



Country. 


Capital. 


Ministers. 


Salary. 


Brazil, 


Rio Janeiro, 


Richard K. Meade,' Va., 


$12,000 


Chili, 


Santiago, 


John Bigler, Cal., 


10,000 


China, 


Canton, 


William B. Reed, Pa., 


12,000 


France, 


Paris, 


Charles J. Faulkner, Va., 


17,500 


Great Britain, 


London, 


George M. Dallas, Pa., 


17,500 



37 



(433) 



434 



UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT. 



Country 


Capital. 


Ministers. 


Salary 


Mexico, 


Mexico, 


Robert M. McLane, Md., 


$12,000 


Peru, 


Lima, 


John E. Clay, Pa., 


10,000 


Prussia, 


Berlin, 


Joseph A. Wright, Ind., 


12,000 


Eussia, 


St. Petersburg 


, Francis W. Pickens, S. C, 


12,000 


Spain, 


Madrid, 


William Preston, Ky., 


12,000 




MINISTERS 


RESIDENT. 




Argentine Confederation 


, Parana, 


B. C. Yancey, Ga., 


7,500 


Austria, 


Vienna, 


J. Glancy Jones, Pa., 


9,000 


Belgium, 


Brussels, 


E. Y. Fair, Ala., 


7,500 


Bolivia, 


La Pas, 


John C. Smith, Ct., 


7,500 


Denmark, 


Copenhagen, 


J. M. Buchanan, Md., 


7,500 


Ecuador, 


Quito, 


C. R. Buckalew, Pa., 


7,500 


Guatemala, 


Guatemala, 


B. L. Clarke, Ky., 


7,500 


Naples, 


Naples, 


Joseph R. Chandler, Pa., 


7,500 


Netherlands, 


Hague, 


Henry C. Murphy, N. Y., 


7,500 


New Granada, 


Bogota, 


Alexander Dimitry, La., 


7,500 


Nicaragua, 


Nicaragua, 


M. B. Lamar, Texas, 


7,500 


Portugal, 


Lisbon, 


G. W. Morgan, Ohio, 


7,500 


Rome, 


Rome, 


J. P. Stockton, N. J., 


7,500 


Sardinia, 


Tm-in, 


John M. Daniel, Va., 


7,500 


Sweden and Norway, 


Stockholm, 


Benjamin F. Angel, N. Y., 


7,500 


Switzerland, 


Berne, 


Theodore S. Fay, Mass., 


7,500 


Turkey, 


Constantinople 


, James WiUiams, Tenn., 


7,500 


Venezuela, 


Caraccas, 


E. A. Turpin, N. Y., 


7,500 



Sandwich Islands, 



COMMISSIONER. 
Honolulu, J. W. Borden, Indiana, 



THIRTY-SIXTH CONGRESS. 



SENATE — 66 Members. 



John C. Breckinkidge, of Kentucky, President, ess-qfficio. 

PraES. CONNECTICUT. 



EXPIRES. ALABAMA. 

1861 Benjamin Fitzpatrick,Wetumpka. 
1865 Clement C. Clay, jr., Huntsville. 

ARKANSAS. 

1861 Robert W. Johnson, Pine Bluff. 
1865 William K. Sebastian, Helena. 

CALIFORNIA. 

1861 William M. Gwin, San Franc'o. 
1863 Milton S. Latham, 



1867 Lafayette S. Foster, Norwich. 
1863 James Dixon, Hartford. 



DELAWARE. 



1863 James A. Bayard, Wilmingt'n. 
1865 Willard Saulsbury, Georget'wn 



1861 David L. Yulee, Homapassa. 

1863 Stephen R. Mallory, Pensacola. 



THIRTY-SIXTH CONGRESS. 



435 



EXPIRES. GEORGIA. 

1861 Alfred Ivei-son, Columbus. 



1865 Robert Toombs, 



Washington. 



ILLINOIS. 

1861 Lyman Trumbull, Alton. 
1865 Stephen A. Douglas, Chicago. 

INDIANA, 

1861 Graham N. Fitch, Logansport. 
1863 Jesse D. Bright, Jeffer'viUe. 



IOWA. 

1867 James Harlan, 
1865 James W. Grimes, 



Mt. Pleasant. 
Burlington. 



KENTUCKY. 

1861 John J. Crittenden, Frankfort. 
1865 Lazarus W. Powell, Henderson. 

LOUISIANA. 

1861 John SlideU, N. Orleans. 

1865 Judah P. Benjamin, N. Orleans. 

MAINE. 

1863 Hannibal Hamlin, Hampden. 
1865 WilliamP.Fessenden, Portland. 

MASSACHUSETTS. 

1863 Charles Sumner, Boston. 

1865 Henry Wilson, Natick. 

MAKTLAND. 

1867 James A. Pearce, Chestert'wn. 
1863 Anthony Kennedy, Baltimore. 

MICHIGAN. 

1863 Zachariah Chandler, Detroit. 
1865 Kingsley S. Bingham, Kensington. 

MINNESOTA. 

1863 Henry M. Rice, St. Paul. 

1865 Morton S.Wilkinson, Blue EarthCo. 

MISSISSIPPI. 

1863 Jefferson Davis, Hurricane, 

1865 Albert G. Brown, Terry, Hinds Co. 

MISSOUEI. 

1861 James S. Green, Canton. 

1863 Trusten Polk, St. Louis. 

NEW HAMPSHIRE. 

1867 Daniel Clark, Manchester. 

1863 John P. Hale, Dover. 



EXPIRES. NEW YORK. 

1861 William H. Seward, Auburn. 
1863 Preston King, Ogdensburg. 

NEW JERSEY. 

1863 John R. Thompson, Princeton. 
1865 John C. Ten Eyck, Burlington. 

NORTH CAROLINA. 

1861 Thomas L. Clingman, Asheville. 
1865 Thomas Bragg, Raleigh. 

OHIO. 

1861 George E. Pugh, Cincinnati. 

1863 Benjamin F. Wade, Jefferson. 

OREGON. 

1861 Joseph Lane, Winchester. 

1865 [Vacancy.] 

PENNSYLVANIA. 

1861 William Bigler, Clearfield. 

1863 Simon Cameron, Harrisburg. 

RHODE ISLAND. 

1863 James F. Simmons, Providence. 
1865 Henry B. Anthony, Providence. 

SOUTH CAROLINA. 

1861 James H. Hammond, Beech Isl'd. 
1865 James Chesnut, jr., Camden. 

TENNESSEE. 

1863 Andrew Johnson, Greenville. 
1865 A. 0. P. Nicholson, Columbia. 



1863 Louis T. Wigfall, Marshall. 
1865 John HemphMl, Austin. 



1861 Jacob Collamer, Woodstock. 

1863 Solomon Foot, Rutland. 



1863 James M. Mason, Winchester. 
1865 Robert M. T. Hunter, Loyds. 

WISCONSIN. 

1861 Charles Durkee, Kenosha. 

1863 James R. Doolittle, Racine. 



436 



UNITED STATES GOVEENMENT. 



HOUSE OF EEPKESENTATIVES — 237 Members. 



William Pennington, of New Jersey, Speaker. 
John W. Foknet, of Pennsylvania, Cleric. 



James A. Stallworth, Evergreen. 

James L. Pugh, Eufaula. 

David Clopton, Crawford. 

Sydenliam Moore, Greensboro'. 

George S. Houston, Athens. 

Williamson R. W. Cobb, Bellefonte. 

Jabez L. M. Curry, Talladega. 

ARKANSAS. 

Thomas C. Hindman, Helena. 
Albert Rust, Little Rock. 



CALIFORNIA. 



Charles L. Scott, 
John C. Burch, 



Sonora. 
Weaverville. 



CONNECTICUT. 

Dwight Loomis, Rockville. 

John Woodruff, New Haven. 

Alfred A. Burnham, Windham. 

Orris S. Ferry, Norwalk. 

DELAWARE. 

WiUiam G. Whiteley, Newcastle. 

FLORIDA. 

George S. Hawkins, Pensacola. 



Peter E. Love, 
"Martin J. Crawford, 
Thomas Hardeman, jr., 
Lucius J. Gartrell, 
John W. Underwood, 
James Jackson, 
Joshua HiU, 
John J. Jones, 

ILLINOIS- 

Elihu B. Washburne, 
John F. Farnsworth, 
Owen Lovejoy, 
William Kellogg, 
Isaac N. Morris, 
John A. McClernand, 
James C. Robinson, 
Philip B. Fouke, 
John A. Logan, 



Thomsville. 

Columbus. 

Macon. 

Atalanta. 

Rome. 

Athens. 

Madison. 

Lester's Dis't. 



Galena. 
St. Charles. 
Princeton. 
Canton. 
Quincy. 

Marshall. 

Belleville. 

Benton. 



INDIANA. 

William J. Niblack, Vincennes. 



William H. English, 
William M. Dunn, 
William S. Holman, 
David Kilgore, 
Albert G. Porter, 
John G. Davis, 
James Wilson, 
Schuyler Colfax, 
Charles Case, 
John U. Pettit, 



Vienna. 

Madison. 

Aurora. 

Muncietown. 

Indianapolis. 

Rockville, 

Crawfordsville. 

South Bend. 

Fort Wayne. 

Wabash. 



IOWA. 

Samuel R. Curtis, Keokuk. 

William Yandever, Dubuque. 

KENTUCKY. 



Henry C. Burnett, 
Samuel 0. Peyton, 
Francis M. Bristow, 
William C. Anderson, 
John Y. Brown, 
Green Adams, 
Robert MaUory, 
WiUiam E. Sims, 
Laban T. Moore, 
John W. Stevenson, 



Cadiz. 

Hartford. 

Elkton. 

DanviUe. 

Elizabethtown. 

Barboursville. 

La Grange. 

Paris. 

Louisa. 

Covington. 



LOUISIANA. 

Edward Bouligny, New Orleans. 

Miles Taylor, Donaldsonville. 

Thomas G. Davidson, East Feliciana. 

John M. Landrum, Shreveport. 



Daniel E. Somes, 
John J. Perry, 
Ezra B. French, 
Freeman H. Morse, 
Israel Washburn, jr. 
Stephen C. Foster, 



Biddeford. 

Oxford. 

Damariscotta. 

Bath. 

Orono. 

Pembroke. 



MARYLAND, 



James A. Stewai-t, 
Edwin H. Webster, 
J. Morrison Harris, 
Henry Winter Davis, 
Jacob M. Kunkel, 
George W. Hughes, 



Cambridge. 

Belair. 

Baltimore. 

Baltimore. 

Frederick. 

West River. 



MASSACHUSETTS. 

Thomas D. Eliot, New Bedford. 

James Buffinton, Fall River. 



UNITED STATES HOUSE OP REPRESENTATIVES. 



437 



Charles F. Adams, 


Quincy. 


Alexander H. Rice, 


Boston. 


Anson Burlingame, 


Cambridge. 


John B. Alley, 


Lynn. 


Daniel W. Gooch, 


Melrose. 


Charles R. Tram, 


Framingham. 


Eli Thaj-er, 


Worcester. 


Charles "Delano, 


Northampton. 


Hemy L. Dawes, 


Adams. 


BIICHIGAN. 


George B. Cooper, 
William A. Howard, [ 


Jackson. 


Detroit. 


Henrj- Waldron, 


Hillsdale. 


Francis W. Kellogg, 


Kelloggville. 


De Witt C. Leach, 


Lansing. 


MIiraESOTA. 


Catus Aldrich, 


Chatfield. 


William Windom, 


Winona. 


MISSISSIPPI. 


Lucius Q. C. Lamar, 


Abbeville. 


Reuben Davis, 


Aberdeen. 


William Barksdale, 


Columbus. 


Otho R. Singleton, 


Canton. 


John J. McRae, 


State Line. 


MISSOUEI. 


J. Richard Barrett, ) 
Francis P. Blah-, ) 


St. Louis. 


Thomas L. Anderson, 


Palmyra. 


John B. Clark, 


Fayette. 


James Craig, 


St. Joseph. 


Samuel H. Woodson, 


Independence 


John S. Phelps, 


Springfield. 


John W. NoeU, 


Perry ville. 



NEW HABIPSHIKE. 



Oilman Marston, Exeter. 

Mason W. Tappan, Bradford. 

Thomas M. Edwards, Keene. 



NEW JEBSET. 



John T. Nixon, 
John L. N. Stratton, 
Garnett B. Adrain, 
Jetur R. Riggs, 
WiUiam Pennington, 



Bridgeton. 
Mount Holly. 
N. Brunswick. 
Paterson. 
Newark. 



NEW YORK. 



Luther C. Carter, 
James Humphrey, 
Daniel E. Sickles, 
Thomas J. Bari% 
William B. Maclay, 
John Cochrane, 
George Briggs, 



Flushing. 
Brooklyn. 
New York. 
New York. 
New York. 
New York. 
New York. 



Horace F. Clark, 
Jolm B. Haskin, 
Charles H. Van Wj-ck, 
William S. Kenyon, 
Charles L. Beale, 
Abraham B. Olin, 
John H. Rejniolds, 
James B. McKean, 
George W. Palmer, 
Francis E. Spinner, 
Clai-k B. Cochrane, 
James H. Graham, 
Roscoe Conklina;, 
R. Holland Duell, 
M. Lindley Lee, 
Charles B. Hoard, 
Charles B. Sedgwick, 
Martin Butterfield. 
Emory B. Pottle, 
Alfred Wells, 
William Irvine, 
Alfred Ely, 
Augustus Frank, 
Silas M. Burroughs, 
Elbridge G. Spaulding, 
Reuben E. Fenton, 



New York. 
Fordham. 
Bloomingburg. 
Kingston. 
Kindcrhook. 
Troy. 
Albany. 
Saratoga Spr. 
Plattsburg. 
Mohawk. 
Schenectady. 
Delhi. 
Utica. 

Cortlandville. 
Fulton. 
Watertown. 
SjTacuse. 
Palmyra. 
Naples- 
Ithaca. 
Corning. 
Rochester. 
Warsaw. 
Medina. 
Buffalo. 
Frewsburg. 



NORTH CAKOLINA. 



William N. H. Smith, 
Thomas Ruffin, 
Warren Winslow, 
Lawrence O'B. Branch, 
John A. Gilmer, 
James M. Leach, 
Burton Craige, 
Zebulon B. Vance, 



George H. Peudletcj, 
John A. Gurlej'-, 
Chas. L. Vallandlgham, 
William Allen, 
James M. Ash'ey, 
William Howard, 
Thomas Corwin, 
Benjamin Stanton, 
John Carey, 
Carey A. Trimble, 
Charles D. Martin, 
Samuel S. Cox, 
John Sherman, 
Harrison G. Blake, 
William Helmick, 
Cvdnor B. Tompkins, 
Thomas C. Theaker, 
Sidney Edgertou, 
Edward Wade, 
John Hutchins, 
John A. Bingham, 



Murfreesboro', 

Goldsboro'. 

Fayetteville. 

Raleigh. 

Greensboro'. 

Lexington. 

Salisbury. 

AshvUle. 



Cincinnati. 

Cincinnati. 

Dayton. 

Greenville. 

Toledo. 

Batavia. 

Lebanon. 

Bellefontain. 

Carey. 

Chillicothe. 

Lancaster. 

Columbus. 

Mansfield. 

Medina. 

New Philad'ia. 

McConuells'lle. 

Bridgeport. 

Akron. 

Cleveland. 

Warren. 

Cadiz. 



37 



438 



UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT. 



Lansing Stout, 



Portland. 



PENNSYLVANIA. 



Thomas B. Florence, 
Edward Joy Morris, 
John P. Verree, 
William Millward, 
John Wood, 
John Hickman, 
Henry C. Longenecker, 
John ScliAvartz, 
Thaddeus Stevens, 
John W. Killinger, 
James H. Campbell, 
George W. Scranton, 
William H. Dimmick, 
Gahisha A. Grow, 
James T. Hale, 
Benjamin F. Junkin, 
Edward McPherson, 
Samuel S. Blair, 
John Govode, 
William Montgomery, 
James K. Moorhead, 
Robert McKnight, 
William Stewart, 
Chapin Hall, 
Elijah Babbit, 



Philadelphia. 

Philadelphia. 

Philadelphia. 

Philadelphia. 

Conshohocken. 

Westchester. 

AUentown. 

Reading. 

Lancaster. 

Lebanon. 

Pottsville. 

Scranton. 

Honesdale. 

Glenwood. 

Bellefonte. 

Bloomfield. 

Gettysburg. 

Hollidaysburg. 

Lockport St'n. 

Washington. 

Pittsburg. 

Allegheny City. 

B'lercer. 

Warren. 

Erie. 



RHODE ISLAND. 

Christopher Robinson, Cumberland. 
William D. Bray ton, Warwick. 



SOUTH CAROLINA. 



John McQueen, 
William Porcher Miles, 
Lawrence M. Keitt, 
Milledge L. Bonham, 
John D. Ashmore, 
William W. Boyce, 



Society Hill. 

Charleston. 

Orangeburg. 

Edgefield. 

Anderson. 

Winsboro'. 



TENNESSEE. 



Thomas A. R. Nelson, 
Horace Maynard, 
Reese B. Brabson, 
William B. Stokes, 
Robert Platton, 
James H. Thomas, 
John V. Wright, 
James M. Quarles, 



Jonesboro'. 

Knoxville. 

Chattanooga. 

Smithville. 

Lebanon. 

Columbia. 

Purdy. 

Clarksville. 



Emerson Etheridge, Dresden. 
William T. Avery, Memphis. 

TEXAS. 

John H. Reagan, Palestine. 

Andrew J. Hamilton, Austin. 

VERMONT. 

Ezekiel P. Walton, Montpelier. 



Justin S. Morrill, 
Homer E. Royce, 



Strafford. 
East Berkshire. 



VIRGINIA. 



Muscoe R. H. Garnett, 
John S. Millson, 
Daniel C. Dejarnette, 
Roger A. Pryor, 
Thomas S. Bocock, 
Shelton F. Leake, 
WiUiam Smith, 
Alexander R. Boteler, 
John T. Harris, 
Sherrard Clemens, 
Elbert G. Jenkins, 
Henry A. Edmundson 
Elbert S. Martin, 



Loretto. 

Norfolk. 
Bowl'g Greene. 
Petersburg. 
Appomattox, C. H. 
Charlottesville. 
Warrenton. 
Shepherdstown. 
Harrisonburg. 
Wheeling. 
Green Bottom. 
Salem. 
Lee, C. H. 



WISCONSIN. 

John F. Potter, East Troy. 

C. C. Washburn, La Crosse. 

Charles H. Larrabee, Horicon. 

Delegates from Territories. 

KANSAS. 

Marcus J. Parrot, Leavenworth City. 

NEBRASKA. 

Experience Eastabrook, Omaha City. 
Contested by Samuel G. Daily. 

NEW MEXICO. 

Miguel A. Otero, Albuquerque. 

UTAH. 

William H. Hooper, Salt Lake City. 

WASHINGTON. 

Isaac I. Stephens, Olympia. 



INDEX TO THE CONSTirUTION. 



Absent members, attendance of, may be compelled to attend . 
Account of receipts and expenditures, to be published 
Acts, records, &c., of one State to have credit in the others . 
Adjom-nment, neither house may adjourn for more than three days 
without consent of the other 
in case of disagreement of the two houses, the Presi 
dent may adjourn them .... 
Admiralty jurisdiction, given to the Supreme Court . 
Admitted, new States may be, by Congress .... 
Age, as a qualification for senators, 30 years .... 
qualification for representatives, 25 years 
qualification for President and vice-president, 35 years 
Alliance, no State shall enter into, with other States or foreign 

powers 

Amendments, to the Constitution, to be concurred in by three 

fourths of the States 

Appointment of federal officers, by the President 

heads of department, or courts of law . 

electors of President and vice-president, by the 

people 

officers of militia, reserved to the States . 
Apportioned, representation and direct taxes, according to federal 
numbers ........... 

Appropriations, to originate in the House of Representatives 
Approved bills, &c., must be, by the President or passed by two 

thirds of both houses of Congress 7 

Armies, Congress may raise and support 

Ai'ming, the militia. Congress may provide for .... 
Arms, the right of the people to keep and bear, reserved . 
Aiiny, Congress may make rules and regulations for the govern 

ment of 

Arrest, members of Congress, exemption from, in civil cases 
Arts and sciences. Congress may encourage ..... 



Const. 


Anal. 


5 


84 


11 


151 


20 


199 



9 
10 

27 

. 9 
6 
9 

(439) 



89 



18 


184 


19 


190 


21 


209 


4 


73 


2 


45 


15 


170 



12 154 



218 
180 
180 

161 

128 

48 
98 

100 
126 
128 
232 

126 

91 

119 



440 



INDEX TO THE CONSTITUTION. 



Attainder, no bill of, to pass 

Attendance, of members, may be compelled 

Authors, to be secured their rights, &c 

Bankrupt laws. Congress may pass 

Bills, for raising revenue, to originate in House of Representatives 
must be presented to the President for approval, but if not 
approved, may be passed by two tliirds vote . 

Bills of credit, no State to emit 

Bribery, public officers may be impeached for ... . 
Borrow money. Congress may ....... 

Capitation tax not to be laid, except in proportion to the federal 

census 11 

Captures, Congress may make rules concerning .... 
Cases to which the judicial power extends, 3d art. sec. 2 

Census, to be taken every ten years 

Citizens of one State entitled to privileges of citizens in other States 
Classes, senators to be divided into three, one thu-d to go out each 

Congress 

Coin money. Congress may 

Commander-in-Chief, the President shall be, of the army and navy 

and the militia in service of the United States 

Commerce, Congress may regulate 

Commissions, to be issued by the President ..... 
Compact, no State to enter into, with other States, &c. 
Compensation of President to be fixed by law, and not increased 

or diminished, &c 

members of Congress, to be fixed by law 
judges, to be fixed by law, and not diminished 
Convene, Congress, President may convene one or both houses of 

Congress 

Counterfeiting, Congress may punish 

Courts, Congress may constitute inferior .... 
Crimes, trial of, shall be by jury, except cases of impeachment 

no person shall be held for a second time . 
Criminal prosecutions, rights of parties to speedy trial, &c. 

Debate, in Congress, not to be questioned elsewhere 

Direct taxes, to be apportioned according to federal numbers 

District, for seat of government, Congress may exercise exclusive 

legislation over 

Delivered up, persons held to service or labor, shall be 
Domestic violence, United States to protect States against . 



Const 


AnaL 


11 


148 


5 


84 


9 


119 


9 


117 


7 


98 


7 


100 


12 


154 


18 


186 


8 


106 


11 


148 


9 


124 


19 


190 


2 


55 


20 


202 


3 


71 


9 


119 


16 


175 


8 


108 


18 


184 


12 


159 


16 


173 


6 


91 


18 


187 


18 


184 


9 


119 


9 


122 


19 


195 


28 


235 


29 


237 


6 


91 


2 


48 


10 


130 


21 


206 


21 


216 



INDEX TO THE CONSTITUTION. 443 

Const. Anal 
Duties and imposts, Congress may levy and collect ... 8 10& 

Election of President and vice-president to be by electors, see art. 

2, sec. 1 13 249 

Elections, times and places of holding, for members of Congress, 

art. 1, sec. 4 5 81 

Eligibility for the office of President, no person except a natural 
born citizen, and 35 years of age .... 
of senators, 14 years a citizen, and 30 years of age 
representatives, seven years a citizen and 25 years of 

age 

Enumeration of inhabitants, to be made every ten years 

Escape of criminals, to be delivered up 

persons held to service, to be delivered up . 
Executive power, vested in a President of the United States . 

departments, President may consult heads of 
Expel, a member, the Senate or House of Kepresentatives have 

power to 5 

Expenditures, to be published annually .... 
Exports, not to be taxed 

Fugitives from justice, to be delivered up . 

labor, not to be discharged, but delivered up . 

Habeas corpus, privilege of, not to be suspended except, &c. . 11 147 

Heads of departments. President may consult . . . . 17 175 

House of Representatives, members to be chosen every second year 1 45 

to originate all revenue bills ... 7 98 

Impeachments, sole power of, in House of Representatives . 

Senate to tiy 

civil officers liable to 

Importations of persons not to be prohibited till 1808 
Inferior courts. Congress has power to establish .... 
Insurrections, to be suppressed by the United States, on applica- 
tion of the State authorities 10 

Invasions, Congress may suppress 

Inventors, to be secured their rights 

Journals, to be kept and republished by both houses of Congress . 
Judges, to be appointed by President and Senate 

tenure of office of, dm-ing good behavior 
Judicial power, vested in a Supreme Court and such inferior courts 

as Congress may establish 18 187 



15 


17C> 


4 


73 


2 


45 


2 


55 


20 


204 


21 


206 


13 


161 


17 


175 


5 


84 


11 


151 


11 


149 


20 


204 


21 


206 



3 


58 


4 


78 


18 


186 


10 


142 


9 


122 


10 


128 


10 


128 


9 


119 


6 


87 


19 


118 


18 


187 



442 



INDEX TO THE CONSTITUTION. 



Jurisdiction of United States courts, see art. 3, sec. 2 

Jury, trial by, at common law secured 

in criminal prosecutions secured ..... 
Justice, fugitives from, to be delivered up 

Labor, persons held to, escaping, not to be discharged but to be 

delivered up to the person to whom due . 
Legislative power, vested in Congress 
Letters of marque and reprisal may be granted 



Majority — to constitute a quorum 
Maritime jurisdiction vested in the Supreme Court 
Marque and reprisal, Congress may grant Letters of 
Meeting of Congress, first Monday in December 
Migration, &c., see Importation .... 
Militia, Congress may call forth, organize, &c. . 

Money, Congress may coin 

borrow .... 



Naturalization — Congress may establish rules of 
Navy, Congress may provide and maintain 
New States, may be admitted into the Union 
Nominations of officers to be made by the President and confirmed 
by the Senate 17 

Officers, each house to elect its own -j ^ 

of the United States shall be appointed by the President 
by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, 
(exceptions) 17 



Const. 


Anal. 


19 


190 


29 


238 


19 


195 


20 


204 


21 


206 


1 


41 


9 


124 


5 


84 


19 


190 


9 


124 


5 


82 


10 


142 


10 


128 


9 


119 


8 


106 


8 


117 


9 


126 


21 


209 



Pardons, President may grant 

People, enumeration of, to be made every ten years . 

Petition, right of, not to be abridged 

Ports, no preference to be given to those of any State 
Post-offices and post-roads. Congress may establish 
President of the United States, executive power vested in 

to sign bills, &c 

Private property not to be taken without compensation 
Privileges of members of Congress, from arrest in civil cases 
Proceedings of each house to be kept and published, except. 
Property of the United States, Congress may dispose of 

Publish, each house its journal 

Punish its members, each house may, for disorderly conduct 



&c. 



180 



58 
76 



180 



17 


175 


2 


55 


27 


230 


11 


151 


9 


119 


13 


161 


7 


100 


29 


235 


6 


91 


6 


87 


21 


212 


6 


87 


5 


84 



INDEX TO THE CONSTITUTION. 



443 



Qualifications of senators, 14 years citizenship and 30 years of age 
representatives, 7 years citizenship and 25 years 

of age 

President, natural born citizen, 35 years of age 
Questions, to be taken by yeas and nays when required by one 

fifth of the members present 

Quorum, a majority shall constitute a, in either house of Congress 

Receipts and expenditures of the public money to be published 

from time to time . 

Representatives, house of, see art. 1, sec. 3 . . . . 
to originate money bUls .... 

Reprieves, President may grant 

Republican government, to be guaranteed to each State 
Revenue, bills to raise, must originate in House of Reps. 
Rules of proceeding, each house may establish 

Science and arts to be promoted ...... 

Seat of government. Congress to exercise exclusive legislation 
Senate, shall be composed of two senators from each State . 

to try impeachments 

to advise the President, &c 

Service, persons escaping from, to be delivered up . . . 
Speech or debate in either house not to be questioned elsewhere 
Standard of weights and measm-es to be fixed by Congress 
Supreme Court to be established, see art. 3, sec. 1 

jurisdiction of, see art. 3, sec. 2 ... 



Const. 


Anal. 


4 


73 


2 


45 


15 


170 


6 


87 


5 


84 


11 


151 


1 


45 


7 


98 


17 


175 


21 


216 


7 


98 


5 


84 


9 


119 


10 


130 


3 


61 


4 


78 


17 


180 


21 


206 


6 


91 


9 


119 


18 


187 


19 


190 



12 



T.ax, not to be levied on exports 

Taxes and representatives to be apportioned according to federal 

numbers 

Congress may levy and collect 

Tender, nothing but gold and silver to be made a . . . 
Territory, Congress shall exercise exclusive power over tenitory 
ceded by States for the seat of government 
Congress may dispose of the territory and other property 

of the United States 

Title of nobility, not to be granted 

Treason against the United States shall consist only in levying war 
against them, or in adhering to theu" enemies, giving them aid 

and comfort 

Treasury, no money to be drawn from except by appropriation 

made by law 11 

Treaties shall be the supreme law of the land .... 23 



11 149 



48 
103 
154 



10 130 



212 
153 



20 196 



151 
223 



444 INDEX TO THE CONSTITUTION. 

Const. Anal. 
Trial by jury shall be preserved 29 238 

Tribunals, Congress may establish, inferior to the Supreme Court 9 122 

Uniform, duties shaUbe, throughout the United States . . 8 103 

Vacancies, in the representations of a State, to be filled by a new 

election 3 58 

in the Senate, may be temporarily filled by executive 

appointments 4 71 

in the office of President, to be filled by the vice-presi- 
dent, president pro tem. of the Senate, and speaker 
of the House of Reps, successively . . . . 16 171 
Veto power, vested to a limited extent in the President . . 7 1 00 

Vice-president is president of the Senate, and succeeds to the ofiice 

of President in case of vacancy 4 76 

Votes, for President and vice-president, to be counted in the pres- 
ence of both houses of Congress ..... 14 242 

"War, Congress to declare . . . . . . . . 9 124 

Weights and measures, standard to be fixed by Congress . . 9 119 
"Writ of habeas corpus, not to be suspended, except, &c. . . 11 147 

Yeas and nays to be taken on all questions when required by one 

fifth of the members present, and on the passage of any bill G 87 
returned by the President with objections . . . .7100 



